Dr. Alissa Putman

Dr. Alissa Putman helps people navigate major life shifts and everyday stressors with a calm, practical approach. She focuses on goals that matter to each person and checks in regularly to be sure the work is useful. Her aim is to build trust and a working connection so people feel heard and understood.

She uses a client-centered stance and draws on cognitive-behavioral ideas and family systems thinking to shape conversations. Sessions often include setting small, achievable steps and noticing what is already working. She also brings principles from positive psychology and executive coaching to help with career decisions, motivation, and burnout.

Putman has 20 years of experience as a psychologist in Maryland. She has worked across higher education and healthcare settings and with diverse populations. Her volunteer activities include suicide prevention education with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and mentoring underrepresented minority teens.

Common concerns she addresses include stress, anxiety, depression, relationship and intimacy issues, grief, self-esteem, career changes, parenting strain, and coping with life changes. She also works with issues such as body image, abandonment, family of origin problems, and multicultural concerns.

Sessions are collaborative and paced to each person. Dr. Putman often uses simple skill practice between meetings and revisits goals to make sure progress feels real. She invites potential clients to consider fit carefully before beginning work together.

How these approaches translate to online care

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and building a trusting connection. In practice this means the therapist reflects what matters to you and checks in often so sessions stay relevant to your goals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at thoughts and behaviors that keep problems going and uses short, practical exercises to test new ways of thinking and acting. Internal Family Systems helps people notice different parts of themselves - for example a worried part or a critical part - and learn gentler ways to relate to them.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with each person to decide whether CBT, client-centered methods, Internal Family Systems, or a blend fits best. This decision will reflect your goals, values, and what feels useful in early sessions.

Confirm current session options before booking so you know how meetings are scheduled. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, shorten travel time, and allow quick check-ins when life gets hectic. It can also let people choose sessions that match their energy level - for example a shorter phone check-in versus a longer video conversation - depending on what the therapist currently offers.