"Quote quote quote quote"

Dr. Barry Lessin, M.Ed., CAAD

I'm a licensed psychologist and Certified Advance Alcohol and Drug Counselor with a passion for working with young people and their families who have been impacted by substance use and related mental health issues. My career spans over forty years as a clinician, administrator, educator, researcher and public health advocate. 

I have learned that no single approach is best for everyone and have had much success in offering flexible alternatives to traditional one-size-fits-all addiction treatment programs. I specialize in discreet customized outpatient services for individuals and families. Whether this is your first time seeking help or you’ve tried other treatment approaches without lasting success, I will collaborate with you to design a personalized treatment plan that meets your individual or family's needs.

A review of my career path will shed some light on my values and principles as a person and therapist:

Personal Influences

My practice and career have been significantly affected by my personal experience with a family member's struggle with mental illness, substance misuse and addiction; as well as my work in the drug policy reform movement, where I have been a leader in advocating a public health and human rights approach to support individuals and families impacted by substance use.

These humbling experiences increased my awareness of the stigmatizing and criminalizing drug policies in our country that make it difficult for people with substance use problems to access treatment. It also motivated me to shifted my focus to embrace harm reduction approaches to treatment: client- and family-centric, evidence-based (proven effective by scientific research), and collaborative. 

Foundation Built on Core Values

Eagleville Hospital, a pioneer of addiction treatment and then at PATH, Inc., a community mental health center in Philadelphia, is where my career foundation was built. It’s where I learned to appreciate:

• The importance of embracing people’s strengths and resources while understanding the overall interaction among biological, psychological, behavioral, social, and spiritual aspects of people’s lives.
• The value of a varied and flexible set of counseling skills and approaches to working with individuals and families with mental health and substance use problems.
• The impact of families on our development; that's why I embrace working with parents and families whenever possible to facilitate improvement.
• The powerful energy of resiliency that resides inside us and the importance of tapping into this energy.

Collaboration and Partnering

My ten years as a drug policy advocate allowed me to view substance use through a lens of public health and human rights and I discovered the importance of becoming a partner in my clients’ unique paths in healing and:

• The value of what harm reduction principles can offer to people wanting to build healthy lifestyles.
• The importance of a holistic foundation of physical, emotional, and spiritual health.

While training at Temple University’s School Psychology program:

• I appreciated the advantages of collaborating with school personnel and community resources and that putting extra effort into developing a network of support in our lives increases the likelihood for positive changes to take hold.

My most valuable training, however, has come directly from my clients themselves. Being a witness to their honesty and courage while sharing life experiences and knowledge with me has made me a better therapist.

Compassionate, Uncompromising Quality

As you get to know me, I expect you to discover my genuine sense of caring and a willingness to put maximum effort into providing quality service at all times.

Licenses / Certifications

Education / Training

Clinical Internship

Child Psychiatry Center, Phila, PA, 1987-1988

Undergraduate

Pennsylvania State University B.S., Psychology, 1974

Publications

Family Survival Skills for Early Recovery - Michael Ascher and Barry Lessin (March 2015)

Helping Teens With Substance Use Problems: Why I Changed My Approach - Barry Lessin (December 2014)

Nine Common Questions About A Drug That Saves Lives - Barry Lessin (September 2014)

Lessin, Barry (2014, August 11) Removing Barriers to Effective Overdose Prevention - Barry Lessin (August 2014)

Harm Reduction Made Me a Much Better Family Therapist - Barry Lessin (July 2014)

Harm Reduction Principles for Effective Parenting Barry Lessin (2014)

Teens and Drugs: Helping Parents Chill Out - Barry Lessin (April 2013)

Providers as Partners: The Integrated Employee Assistance Program - B. Lessin and D. Bern - Keynote Press: Torontof 1997)

The HMO Client: Working within the HMO system to provide effective EAP services. Barry Lessin - Employee Assistance Quarterly, 4(2), 61-73. (1988)