Courtney Rennicke Ph.D.
I am a clinical psychologist, attachment-focused family therapist and trainer for mental health professionals worldwide. In working with the impact of developmental trauma I have seen first hand the importance of working holistically with clients’ bodies, minds, and relationships to support their healing. My practice includes psychedelic integration therapy as another reparative pathway to address the impact of developmental trauma and its often entrenched experiences of depression, anxiety and relationship difficulties.
My passion for working with relationship dynamics in families and understanding the root causes of defensiveness, shame, and the vital need for a felt sense of safety has expanded my practice into executive coaching and organizational consultation.
Book Appointment
CONTACT
Courtney Rennicke Ph.D
Director
P: (212) 337-3565
CR@rennickeassociates.com
AVAILABILITY
CLIENT FOCUS
“I think the big shift occurs when you can start seeing yourself as adaptive rather than pathological. The cascading impact on increased self-compassion and the broader lens with which you see the world that unfurls from that change is a privilege to bare witness to.”
Courtney Rennicke
LATEST POST
SPECIALIZATION
FAMILY CONSULTATION/INTENSIVES
My foundation in working with clients and families comes from two attachment-focused approaches, Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) and Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP), that focus on how our relationships have impacted our capacities to feel and express emotion and cope with the joys and challenges of life. Please see our Family Intensive page for more information about this potentially transformative therapeutic experience for your child and family.
PSYCHEDELIC INTEGRATION THERAPY
EXECUTIVE COACHING/ORGANIZATIONAL CONSULTATION
TRAINING IN DYADIC DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOTHERAPY (DDP)
I first began my journey with Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) in 2007. When I teach or supervise other professionals, I emphasize creating an atmosphere of emotional safety that celebrates the diversity of identities of who I teach and cultures where I teach, so that trainees can feel affirmed to play, explore and soar in their professional development. I have provided workshops and trainings in the United States, Finland, Greece, the Czech Republic, United Kingdom, North Macedonia, Kenya, New Zealand and Australia and has observed that what is unifying across all these countries is people’s remarkable dedication and tenacity in trying to connect with vulnerable children, and of course the unending awe sparked by resiliency.
RECENT TRAINING SITES
– Compass Seminars, Brisbane, AUSTRALIA
– Roots Research Center NGO, Athens, GREECE
– Play Kenya, Rafiki Mwena, Nakuru, KENYA
– EFT Association of Netherlands, Utrect, NETHERLANDS
– Caring Families, Aotearoa for Wellington, NEW ZEALAND
– SOS Children’s Village, Skopje, NORTH MACEDONIA
– DDP Connects UK (CIC), Canterbury, England, UNITED KINGDOM
– Foster and Adoptive Care Coalition, St. Louis, MO, UNITED STATES
– Adoption/Foster Care Therapist Network, New York, NY UNITED STATES
– Esperanza, New York, NY, UNITED STATES
EDUCATION
Masters of Change, INSEAD
My thesis focused on the cultural antecedents behind the current resurgence of psychedelics, and the ways psychedelics might expand the scope and dimensions of our reflective capacities by highlighting embodied, sensory experiences and perspectives that connect us to other people and the natural world around us.
Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University.
My dissertation was part of a project funded by the National Science Foundation and focused on the search for meaning of the events of September 11th among people who were in or around The World Trade Center and its impact on their well-being.
B.S. with Honors in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University.
My Honors Thesis was an on-site study of the emotional and systemic impact of trauma on an intensive care burn unit in an urban hospital setting.
PRIOR CLINICAL POSITIONS, ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS, & AFFILIATIONS
Chair of the Board of Directors and Board Member at Large for the United States of the Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy Institute.
An international board dedicated to furthering the training of Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy worldwide.
President and Co-Founder of the Adoption Foster Care Therapist Network
A non-profit organization of attachment, adoptive and foster care specialized mental health professionals.
Consultant for National Institute of Mental Health (R01) Grant “Predicting Heterogeneous Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in School-aged Children with Early Caregiving Adversities”
Under Principal Investigator, Nim Tottenham, Ph.D., Director of the Developmental Affective Neuroscience Lab at Columbia University.
Clinical Psychology Supervisor at Teachers College, Columbia University
Supervising doctoral students in their psychological testing and intake assessment practicum.
ADVANCED CLINICAL TRAINING
Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy ©
Certified Trainer, Consultant & Practitioner.
Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy
Level III Certified Therapist
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Postdoctoral Fellowship at the American Institute for Cognitive Therapy with Robert Leahy, Ph.D.
Collaborative Problem Solving
Level I training in with Stuart Ablon, Ph.D. and Ross Green, M.D.
Emotion Focused Therapy
Level I training with Leslie Greenberg, Ph.D.
Theraplay©
Level 1 Training with Daphna Lender, LCSW
Child Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT)
Introductory training at AFCTN’s 2nd Annual Statewide Training in Albany, NY with Sue Bratton, Ph.D.
PRIOR CLINICAL EXPERIENCE
MEDIA
Rennicke, C. and Wright, J.A. (2012)
Helping Your Decision to Adopt, Part 2: Understanding the Role of Family Therapy in Supporting Healthy Attachment. Webinar for the Gladney Center for Adoption.
Rennicke, C. (2009-present)
Advisory Team Member and Mental Health Contributor for NYC Private Schools Blog:
Post 1: Yet Another Reason to Kill Your Television…
Post 2: The Fear of Falling Behind
Post 3: Making Sense of the Chaos: Identifying Triggers for your “Challenging” Child
Post 4: The Proactive, Purposeful, Power of Empathy: Preventing Chaos
Post 5: Drawing Restraint: Marshmallows and Metacognition
Rennicke, C. (May 28, 2008).
Is Creativity a Side Effect of Bipolar Disorder? HealthTalk Radio.
WORKSHOPS & PRESENTATIONS
Integrating AEDP into a DDP Family Intensive
Presented at the DDP Annual Conference in Kingson, Ontario, CANADA October 31,2017 with Leah Langsam, Psy.D.
Surprise! Using the Brain as a Guide to Heal Blocked Trust
Keynote Talk Presented at Fostering Kids New Zealand Annual Conference in Christchurch, NEW ZEALAND, September 29, 2017
Reawakening the Capacity to Connect in Hurt Children,
Workshop Presented at Fostering Kids New Zealand Annual Conference in Christchurch, NEW ZEALAND, September 28, 2017
Safe Brains Learn Best:
The Basic Attachment-Focused Principles of Helping Traumatized Children and Adolescents Learn and Thrive at School
Webinar Presented to MN Adopt on June 8, 2017
Healing Blocked Trust and Blocked Care:
The Basic Attachment-Focused Principles of Helping Traumatized Children and Adolescents at Home, Foster Care and School Presented at the NATAMA Conference
Prague, CZECH REPUBLIC on May 12, 2017
Healing Blocked Trust and Blocked Care:
The Basic Attachment-Focused Principles of Helping Traumatized Children and Adolescents at Home, Foster Care and School
Presented in Tampere, FINLAND on November 11-12, 2016
DDP Practice in NYC
Presented at the Annual DDP Conference in Stony Point, New York, USA on November 1, 2016 with Leah Langsam, Psy.D.
Putting Attachment Focused Family Therapy to Work for Children in Foster Care and Their Families.
Rennicke, C. (2013). Presentation at the VOLAG Quarterly Meeting at New York City Administration for Children and Families Headquarters in New York, NY.
Changing the Lens: Understanding Children in Foster Care through Attachment Theory.
Rennicke, C. (2012). Presentation to the Adoption Action Network in New York, NY.
Attachment Focused Family Therapy: What is Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy?
Rennicke, C. (2011). Presentation to the New York State Citizen’s Coalition for Children 22nd Annual Foster Care and Adoption Conference in Albany, NY.
The Socio-Emotional Health of Toddlers and Older Children Adopted form China and Taiwan.
Stanley, W., Rennicke, C., and McAleer, E. (2010). Workshop given at the 30th annual Adoptive Parents Committee (APC) Conference, Brooklyn, NY.
Overview of Adoptees Testing Results and Treatment Needs.
Rennicke, C. (2010). Presentation given to the Gladney Center for Adoption, New York, NY.
Beyond Stickers and Star Charts: How to Enhance your Treatment of “Difficult” Kids by Using Empathy, Attachment Theory, and Problem Solving.
Rennicke, C. (2009). Workshop given for mental health professionals at the American Institute for Cognitive Therapy in New York, NY.
PUBLICATIONS
The Psychedelic Balcony: Phantastic Object or Simply Fantastic?
Rennicke, C. (2024). [Master’s Thesis, INSEAD]
Treating Explosive Kids: The Collaborative Problem Solving Approach.
Rennicke, C. (2008). Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Book Reviews, 4, 5, 1-3.
Enhanced Creativity in Bipolar Disorder Patients: A Controlled Study.
Santosa, C.M., Strong, C.M., Nowakowska, C., Wang, P.W., Rennicke, C.M., Ketter, T. (2007). Journal of Affective Disorders, 100, 1, 31-39.
Self-Enhancement Among High Exposure Survivors of the September 11 Terrorist Attacks in New York City.
Bonanno, G., Rennicke, C., Dekel, S. (2005). Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 6, 984-998.
Personality and Temperament Differences in Euthymic Bipolar Disorder Patients.
Rennicke, C.M., Strong, C.M., Santosa, C.M., Sachs, N., Wang, P.W., Winsberg, M.E., Ketter, T.A. (2000). Poster session presented at the 153rd Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, Chicago, IL.
LICENSURE
Psychologist, New York State
