Debra Kaplan, In Balance Counseling, is an Arizona board licensed therapist focusing on 
adolescents, adults, individuals, couples and families.  Debra also serves as EMDR therapist at
Sierra Tucson.

Having earned her MBA in 1985, Debra expanded on a career that eventually landed her in the
commodity markets of  New York.  Time spent on Wall Street and on the commodity trading floor
offered an unforeseen study in and passion for human behavior and relational interaction.  
Those years became the foundation for her studies and pursuit in counseling psychology.
 
A life change brought Debra to  Arizona in 1995.  Along with her passion for psychology and her 
personal growth in recovery, Debra went on to complete a Masters degree in counseling psychology
from the Arizona School of Professional Psychology and merged her academic and life experiences.  

Debra studies under Pia Mellody, a preeminent authority, lecturer and educator in the fields of
addictions, relationships, and codependence at The Meadows, in  Wickenburg, Arizona. 
Pia Mellody’s ground breaking work in codependence, boundaries, and the effects of childhood
trauma on emotional development has profoundly influenced the current therapeutic standards
of treatment in the field of addictions.     

In addition to Pia’s therapeutic contributions Debra also incorporates the work of
Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, M.D, in her practice and intensive out-patient consulting.  
Dr. van der Kolk is a noted clinician, researcher and teacher in the area of 
complex posttraumatic stress. 

Since the 1970s, Dr. van der Kolk and various collaborators have researched and published
extensively on the impact of trauma.  Their work with psychodynamic and interpersonal aspects
of the impact of trauma on development has become the therapeutic treatment standard for
understanding and healing complex posttraumatic stress.
 
Debra's therapeutic approach is based on her personal, academic and professional work.  Debra
trained at Sierra Tucson, a leading treatment facility in Tucson, Arizona, licensed in the treatment
of  trauma, addictions, and behavioral disorders. 

She utilizes  experiential  and emotion focused  modalities and has expanded on her training
completed at The Meadows and Sierra Tucson.  Her passion for her discipline motivates her to stay 
current on advances in the field of trauma and addictions treatment, including the study of  recent
theoretical findings and practice in methodologies of treatment.   As such, Debra is a  Level II trained
therapist in the practice of  EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) and 
expects to receive her advanced certification by EMDRIA in 2010.  Debra is a  member of  EMDRIA,
ISTSS, and SASH, organizations dedicated to the treatment of trauma and the advancement of
sexual health.  Currently Debra is  pursuing her Certification as a Sex Addiction Therapist (CSAT)
through IITAP (International Institute for Trauma and Addiction Professionals).

In working with Debra clients can expect to decrease or extinguish self-defeating behaviors that
present obstacles to enduring change.  Those obstacles may include unresolved trauma, addictions,
sexual compulsivity, anxiety, depression as well as difficulties in personality.   In addition Debra
addresses key emotional responses by understanding her client’s non-verbal communication styles
as individuals, in a family or a partnership dynamic.   

“I look to foster shifts in relational nuances that encourage development of healthier communication
and emotional interaction. "

Debra’s therapeutic style is supportive and encouraging.  Individuals, couples and families work on
self-empowerment, increased self-esteem and authentic self-efficacy while experiencing rewarding and 
emotionally connected relationships.  

“We will work towards enduring change in a brief and effective manner.  My goal is to help my clients
become more self aware and insightful and thus more accomplished in making healthier choices.  
By so doing...

you become the architect of your own life! 

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