Dr. Guerra’s unique approach draws on traditional psychotherapy, Eastern philosophy, mind-body approaches, and the dramatic arts to tailor treatments to his clients. His tireless pursuit of healing and freeing people from negative behavioral patterns has led him down many different avenues. Dr. Guerra is a psychologist, psychotherapist, mindfulness meditation teacher, educator, executive coach, playback theatre actor, author, and public speaker. “What unites this list is a commitment and desire to address emotional suffering, and to address the personal and professional effectiveness of individuals and groups,” he says.
He has studied Western and Eastern approaches to wellness with equal fervor, bridging the great thought divide between classical analysis and more contemplative practices through a refreshingly pragmatic “whatever works, for whom, when, and under what circumstances” treatment approach. “I believe in solutions to problems so I prefer to keep all options open and see how different schools of thought work together,” he says. “I also believe that people have significant inner resources and strengths that guide them toward healing and growth.”
One fundamental of Dr. Guerra’s work is the mind-body connection. He sees many physical ailments as having a strong relationship to the ways people think. “A lot of people who live with a chronic pain or other medical condition tend to hold on to a lot of stress in the body and mind. This can contribute to depression and anxiety. Let’s say there is a back injury and their career is compromised, but working is a strong part of their identity. So now they may be frustrated and angry, perhaps fighting with their spouse or loved ones, and taking a lot of pain medication. They seek medical treatment and need surgery and maybe the surgeon needs to remove a vertebrae, or fuse their spine, and they’re still not back to work and they’re tense and anxious and depressed. It’s a chicken and egg problem — the medical problem may be upheld by anxiety and anxiety may exacerbate the medical problem. They may go back to their physician and have multiple surgeries because that may be all they know is available to them to deal with the problem.”
Dr. Guerra maintains a successful private practice and an active
calendar as an executive coach. His breakthrough work in the corporate
sector helps companies see the value in developing their employees
across the matrix of organizations. He has coached over 500 managers
of top companies across the globe in leadership skills that include
gaining personal awareness, influencing, and learning better
self-management to be more effective leaders. “The connection between
executive coaching and clinical work is that aspect of human nature
that reaches for positive change and greater effectiveness,” he
explains.
Dr. Guerra brings nearly twenty years of experience and distinguished
academic accreditation to his work. Dr. Guerra received a B.A. in
Psychology with an emphasis in behavioral and neuroscience research
from Franklin & Marshall College. He completed his masters and
doctorate degrees in Clinical Psychology from Indiana University of
Pennsylvania. He has completed a certificate program with the
Executive Coach Academy in New York City, is certified in the
WholeBrain Creativity NBI™ (Neethling Brain Instrument Assessments),
and is qualified to administer and interpret the Myers-Briggs
Personality Type Indicator© (MBTI©), the Bar-on Emotional
Quotient-Inventory (EQ-i©), and the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode
Instrument (TKI). Daniel is a member of the ORGDYNE Coach Consultants
Consortium. He was on staff as a rehabilitation psychologist at NYU
Medical Center: The Rusk Institute from 2000-2003, a faculty member at
The Albert Einstein School of Medicine from 2004-2011 and a consulting
psychologist for Beth Israel Medical Center from 2004-2011. In 2001,
he co-authored a manual that guides mental health clinicians on how to
address the needs of first responders to disasters based on the events
surrounding 9-11.
