Dr. Ranjana Hari (or RJ) is a psychology postdoctoral fellow and a certified school psychologist. She completed her doctoral degree from Pace University, New York, where she was the recipient of the Ivan-Wentworth-Rohr Professional Practice Award. She received her Masters in School Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. RJ specializes in working with children, teens, and adults. She treats anxiety, depression, trauma and PTSD, OCD, relationship, and self-esteem issues, amongst other mental health challenges.
Previously, RJ was the founder of a national award-winning e-commerce business for expectant and new mothers in the UK and successfully ran it for several years before moving to the US. Some of her business awards include the prestigious UK Dept of Trade & Industry (DTI) National E-business Start-up award and the Microsoft Business Achievement award.
Prior to joining CBTAAA, Dr. Hari has worked in a variety of settings, including schools, college counseling clinics, foster care agencies, and hospitals (outpatient and inpatient care), providing both individual and group therapy. As a therapist, she stresses the importance of developing a positive alliance with her clients. She primarily utilizes the goal-oriented, therapeutic approach of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to develop effective, appropriate, individualized treatment plans based on the contextual needs of clients, always incorporating clients’ characteristics, culture, and preferences. Her experience of dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) and psychodynamic work further enables her to have an integrated treatment approach. She creates an inclusive and non-judgmental environment for her clients, providing them a safe sharing space that allows them to explore their thoughts deeply with the help of open-ended questions. Her unique style lies in her ability to build a rapport with even the most resistant patients and engage them in treatment.
Dr. Hari has several years of experience and specialized training in psychological assessments – identifying cognitive abilities and functioning together with behavioral and social-emotional understanding for children and adults. Along with diagnostic clarification, she believes that a comprehensive psychological evaluation can help an individual gain an insight into their strengths and challenges. Together, she works with the client (and/or their family as needed) to come up with tailored treatment plans, personalized educational strategies, and targeted interventions. Interpretation of the assessment findings and providing detailed feedback are also a crucial part of the evaluation process.
A collaborative engagement is an important part of both her therapeutic and the assessment process. Dr. Hari is fluent in English, Hindi, and Urdu.
