PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Elizabeth Wray, MS, LMFT

Elizabeth Wray earned her Bachelor of Science in Psychology and her Master of Science in Counseling with emphasis on Marriage and Family Counseling from California State University Northridge, Summa Cum Laude. During her graduate studies, Elizabeth provided psychotherapy to low-income families, children, adolescents and adults at the Mitchell Family Counseling Clinic. Upon graduating she began working in the treatment setting, focusing primarily on eating disorders, often with co-morbidity of depression, anxiety, chemical dependency and trauma.

She is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and additionally, fully trained EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) therapist, which she brings into her therapy practice. She specializes in eating disorders and has been working in the treatment modality for over four years. Prior to joining the Center for Discovery team, she was a Program Director of Residential and Outpatient treatment programs, treating teens, and adult women and men.

Elizabeth has a Rogerian, humanistic background, and is very attentive on providing client care that is warm and engaging. She encourages collaboration with the client in the treatment planning process and goals. She is compassionate, warm, understanding and empathetic. She loves to decorate cakes, crochet, travel and read.

PRIMARY THERAPIST

Kaitlin Stone, MFTI

Katie Stone is the Primary Therapist at Center For Discovery, Woodland Hills OP, treating adolescents and adults and families impacted by eating disorders. Katie is a Marriage and Family Therapy Intern and earned her Bachelor’s of Art degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara in Psychology and Art and her Master’s of Art degree in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from Pepperdine University. Katie has a specialized interest in mindfulness and is certified yoga teacher. She is a member of the International Honor Society in Psychology (PSI CHI) and the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT).

REGISTERED DIETITIAN

Carissa Berger

Cassie is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. She received a Bachelors degree in both Journalism and Nutrition from California State University, Northridge (CSUN), whereby she also completed her Master of Science degree in Nutrition and Food Science. During her graduate studies, Cassie critically evaluated many areas of food culture and utilized her experience in writing and education to combat present day food myths in regards to health and nutrition. Prior to joining the team at Center for Discovery, Cassie gained her clinical experience as an intern at UCLA Medical Center and is concurrently working as a Clinical Dietitian at Adventist Health Simi Valley Hospital.

Cassie adheres to the All Foods Fit Philosophy and enjoys helping clients find their own path to recovery by creating a healthy relationship with food.  She works with both adolescent and adult clients on setting and achieving their individual goals while focusing on the principles of intuitive eating.

She is a member of the Los Angeles Dietetic Association and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

REGISTERED DIETITIAN

Aaron Flores, RDN

Aaron Flores is a registered dietitian nutritionist based out of Los Angeles, California.  With nearly 10 years of experience, Aaron has worked with eating disorders in a variety of settings.  A large part of his career was spent working at the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System where he helped develop and launch one of the first Binge Eating Disorder programs to help Veterans struggling with this disorder.  Since leaving the VA, Aaron has continued to work in the eating disorder community helping run groups and providing individual counseling to adolescents at multiple treatment facilities in Los Angeles.

His main areas of focus are Intuitive Eating and Health at Every Size® and in his work, Aaron helps individuals learn how to make peace with food and develop body-positive behaviors.  Aaron’s work has been featured during Weight Stigma Awareness Week, in blogs for the National Eating Disorder Information Centre and was the closing keynote speaker of the 2016 Binge Eating Disorder Awareness Annual Conference. Along with his work with eating disorders, he also is a co-host of the podcast, Dietitians Unplugged. Aaron is most recently a Body Trust® certification recipient.

PRIMARY THERAPIST

Tessa Gordon, AMFT

Tessa Gordon, is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist, Registered Yoga and Mindful Movement Instructor.  Tessa graduated Magna Cum Laude with Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Southern California and received her Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology, emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from Phillips Graduate University–where she specialized in Narrative/Postmodern Therapies. She specializes in eating disorders, body image, anxiety, substance mis-use, relationship dynamics, and trauma.

Combining clinical and lived experience with a love of social justice, Tessa works as a Program Therapist for Center For Discovery, where her passion to help others find recovery and healing is integrated into each part of her work. For several years, Tessa has been actively involved in the eating disorder recovery field. Prior to joining CFD, Tessa has provided therapy at a variety of community counseling centers, treatment facilities, and in private practice. Tessa has worked as a mentor and ED recovery coach, helping others receive the appropriate level of care, advocating for clients and families rights, and promoting body acceptance. Tessa is extremely passionate about working closely with individuals to discover and connect to their hopes, values, passions and interests outside of the problem, and support them in re-(dis)covering what their “anti-eating disorder” life will look like. Her ability to think outside the nine dots, and ask questions that others may not, enables her to work with her clients to develop creative solutions to help untangle what many would consider to be complicated situations.

She believe that learning to trust our true nature means unlearning the socially constructed narratives that tell us we are less than others and somehow inherently flawed

PSYCHIATRIST

Vladimir Lipovetsky, MD

Vladimir Lipovetsky is the medical director at Center For Discovery Woodland Hills treating adolescents, adults and families impacted by psychiatric conditions, including eating disorders, substance abuse and others.  Dr. Lipovetsky is a psychiatrist who earned his MD at the David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine.  He completed his psychiatry residency training at UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute.  There he also completed a fellowship in trauma. He is a board certified psychiatrist with 20 years of experience of treating patients across the range of psychiatric disorders, including eating disorders.

LEAD FACILITY COORDINATOR, EATING DISORDER DIVISION

Kaylee Sandstorm, BS

Kaylee completed her Bachelor of Science degree in Nutritional Science, with a minor in Holistic Health, through California State University Los Angeles. She worked for Center for Discovery in a residential treatment center as a Diet Technician during her undergraduate career.

After graduation, her fondness with working in mental health had only grown stronger. She moved to Santa Barbara and was the Chef and Diet Technician for an intensive outpatient eating disorder facility. There she was able to build a strong foundation in food service management. Constructed Congregate Living Health Facility (CLHF) dietetic sanitation policies for all residential treatment center (RTC) locations for upcoming health inspections, generated proper food service/handling protocols and guidelines for every employee to follow companywide and created a 100+ page menu with full nutritional breakdown.

She opened the Woodland Hills location as Facility Coordinator for the first year and strived for excellence. Kaylee has since been promoted to Lead Facility Coordinator for the Eating Disorder Division, and is committed to attaining standardized and quality care at all of our outpatient facilities throughout the nation.

DIET TECHNICIAN

Lani Rausa

Lani is currently a Family and Consumer Sciences Major with a focus in Nutrition and Dietetics at California State University, Northridge. With a degree from the Le Cordon Bleu program at the California School of Culinary Arts, she has gained experience from restaurants to catering to becoming a private chef.  Her motto is “Eat to live so I can live to eat!”

Her interests in food, fitness, and wellness have led her to pursue a career in the field of Nutrition where she feels rewarded by sharing these passions with others. She is thrilled to be a part of the Center for Discovery, Woodland Hills team, helping individuals find strength through recovery and vitality.

PROGRAM THERAPIST – BINGE EATING DISORDER ADVISOR

Kaley Leshem, MA, ASW

Kaley Leshem is a registered Associate Social Worker and therapist at Center for Discovery. She holds a Master of Social Work from the University of Southern California, where she gained practical experience in psychiatric and community mental health settings, and developed a clinical and academic interest in eating disorder treatment and prevention. Prior, she worked at Crisis Text Line, where she trained and supervised on-call crisis counselors. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Religion, summa cum laude, from Tufts University, where she focused on feminist history

THERAPIST

Jamie Gelbart, MA, AMFT

Jamie Gelbart graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a BA in Journalism, and obtained a Masters degree in Kinesiology/Sports Management from Cal State Long Beach and a Masters degree in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University.

After a successful high school and college career as an elite athlete, Division I softball pitcher, Jamie worked with professional and college athletes and spent ten years at USC working with the men’s and women’s tennis teams.

Since entering the field of psychology and counseling, Jamie has extensive clinical experience working with children, families, adults, couples and groups, in both private practice, and community agencies.

Jamie is passionate about incorporating all aspects of health and wellness into therapy. With a personal background in elite athletics, and a registered Marriage and Family Therapy Associate, she has a unique approach to helping those she work with achieve their full potential in relationships, life/work balance, negotiating life’s stressors by focusing on personal strengths and combining therapy with self-care and motivational goal setting.

Jamie utilizes positive psychology, strength based, compassion and empathy, Mindfulness, Self-Compassion for optimal health and wellness.

CLINICAL ADVISOR

Kate Behzadi, MA, LMFT

Kate Behzadi is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and eating disorder specialist. She earned a Bachelor’s in Interpersonal Communication Studies from UCLA, as well as a Master’s in Clinical Psychology from the University of Southern California. Kate has a background providing mental health services to underprivileged communities, including the homeless population and low-income families. She began her training in the treatment of eating disorders while working as a Primary Therapist in a day treatment facility for both adolescent and adult men and women. There she gained experience in treatment planning and client advocacy, as well as providing individual and group therapy to clients and their families throughout the recovery process.

Along with her training in cognitive behavioral and narrative modalities, Kate has a passion for psychoeducation and family systems work. She uses an integrative approach to draw on client’s strengths and resources to help them align their values and preferences with their actions and behaviors. Kate’s warm, yet direct, nature provides a safe space for clients to challenge their eating disorder and strengthen their healthy self. In addition to her role at Center for Discovery, Kate provides individual outpatient treatment in her private practice.

FACILITY COORDINATOR

Alyssa Song, BA

Alyssa obtained her Bachelor of Arts, in Sociology & Psychology, from Whittier College. As an undergrad she focused her senior research on childhood self-esteem which validated her want to work in the treatment field because she knew she had a passion for aspiring to help others realize their worth. She previously helped open an eating disorder outpatient treatment center in the Santa Clarita Valley where she coordinated and managed the administrative and clinical needs of the facility. A firm advocate for the eating disorder field she was fast promoted and began to work closely with the admissions department and developing marketing approaches. After 3 years she was ready to move up and recently became a part of the Center for Discovery team at Beverly Hills and now Woodland Hills. No stranger to the eating disorder field, she is always ready to take on any task at hand and her no- nonsense attitude attributes to her determination to providing superior care for clients and their families.