Dr. Ronald D. Fandrick
The philosophy of Dr. Ronald D. Fandrick is to help people to help themselves, in order to get better – not just feel better. Dr. Fandrick possesses an integrative background in psychological services and intervention strategies. Such services include: Traumatic Incident Reduction, Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing, Prolonged Exposure Therapy, Rational-Emotive and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and out-patient/in-patient individual, group, marital, and family therapies. In addition, Dr. Fandrick has experience in teaching and public speaking, as well as case management and crisis intervention/stress management.
Dr. Fandrick was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1948, and was raised in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. He has experienced the effects of strife and psychological problems first-hand, as his mother was institutionalized with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. He was able to make the best of a difficult childhood by incorporating the principles of self-reliance, self-determination, and self-discipline, which ultimately led him to work at understanding others.
Such principles served Dr. Fandrick well throughout his career in sports. He has participated in national and international amateur athletics, and signed a contract with the Chicago Bears Football Team. A back injury turned his attention from athletic participation to coaching and education.
He has taught every grade level from pre-kindergarten to high school and adult education. The experiences gained from working with and observing the psychological interactions of children during their time in school, as well as overcoming his own problems with a learning disability, have provided Dr. Fandrick with a unique perspective of human behavior, apart from the clinical setting.
His early childhood experiences, as well as his strong desire to do more for his students who were experiencing emotional pain and learning/performance problems, led Dr. Fandrick to obtain a doctoral degree in clinical psychology. He went on to become fully licensed as a clinical psychologist in Michigan, and began the A New Hope Counseling Center in order to offer psychological services to a wide variety of clients.
Dr. Fandrick believes that psychotherapy is vastly different than visiting a medical doctor, in that it requires the clinician to be very active and involved in the process of changing thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. There are no instant, painless or passive cures - no “magic pills”.
Instead, there are assignment exercises, practice sessions, record-keeping, and perhaps other projects, as well. Change will sometimes be easy and swift, but more often, it will involve a need for repetition and continued practice at changing long-held patterns of self-defeating behavior.
Dr. Fandrick takes a psycho-educational approach to people’s problems, and so encourages his clients to learn more about the style of the therapy he uses, called “Rational Emotive and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy”, formulated by Albert Ellis, Ph.D and Aaron T. Beck, M.D. He asks his clients to become knowledgeable about therapeutic goals, methods, their effectiveness, as well as any possible side effects, so that they will essentially become their own therapists. Clients are often given books, articles, cds, DVDs, as well as lists of helpful web sites, all in an attempt to help them become more self-reliant and self-determined. Therapy is viewed as a collaboration between two individuals, one who defines the problem areas to be worked on, and the other who (as a consultant with specialized knowledge) offers assistance in making the desired changes.
Rational Emotive and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has been repeatedly, scientifically demonstrated to be of benefit to most people and in most situations. These might include: the lifting of a depression, no longer feeling angry or anxious, or help with other psychological conditions. Individuals are often better able to understand their personal goals and values, and thus experience maturity, and personal growth and development.
Dr. Fandrick believes the rational-emotive and cognitive behavioral approach to therapy proves, by far, to be the most successful method for alleviating stress and overcoming the stumbling blocks that prevent people from achieving their goals and reaching their potential.
He is committed to helping individuals help themselves to get better, and to achieve more of what they want in life, and less of what they don’t, not just “to feel better. But actually get better at managing their lives.”
In addition to his work with teens through adults, Dr. Fandrick has served on a local school district’s core crisis intervention team. He is also a member of the American Red Cross Disaster Mental Health Team, the Greater Lansing area’s Crisis Intervention Stress Debriefing group.
Most recently to note, Dr. Fandrick was called by the National Team of the American Red Cross Disaster Mental Health group and assigned to New York City, following the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. He worked with victims and survivors for two weeks following the attacks, as well as escorting them to Ground Zero. He sees this as a life-altering experience, and one that took a toll on all of those who were selected to provide psychological services.
I know what it is like. I have been there myself.
I know how it feels to go through a trauma so devastating that you think you will never recover. I know what it is like to struggle with inner demons. And I am here to tell you, you can overcome this.