Clinical Psychologist
Dr. Sattler graduated from Bradley University in 1998 with her Bachelor’s Degree, where she majored in Psychology and minored in Sociology and Women’s Studies. In 2003, Dr. Sattler enrolled in the PGSP-Stanford Psy.D. Consortium, in Palo Alto, CA, where she earned her doctorate in clinical psychology in 2009. While completing her coursework at Stanford’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Dr. Sattler pursued her dissertation at Stanford Hospital, where she interviewed patients receiving electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for severe depression, to better understand how their coping styles and belief in treatment impacted their treatment outcomes. After completing her APA-accredited internship at UCSC’s Counseling and Psychological Services Center, Dr. Sattler took on the position of Multicultural Postdoctoral Fellow at San Jose State University’s Counseling Center, where social justice and advocacy work was a primary focus of her training and outreach to students.
Dr. Sattler is licensed to practice psychology in both California and Hawai’i.
While Dr. Sattler has enjoyed her work with young adults in university counseling centers, she also has appreciated her time connecting therapeutically with families and older adults in community mental health. Dr. Sattler worked for the Hawai’i Department of Education for one year on Maui, where she completed psychological assessments of children, and she supervised mental health clinicians who provided therapy for children at the upcountry public schools. Dr. Sattler provided therapy to children and their families at West Maui Counseling Center in Lahaina, before opening her own private practice, Counseling Services for the Community of Maui, in 2015 in Wailuku. Dr. Sattler is focused on drawing from evidence-based interventions and has had extensive training in Dialectical-Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Emotionally Focused Therapy for Couples (EFT).
Dr. Sattler has had a special connection to California, since moving to the Golden State from Illinois in 1998, and she has lived in West Hollywood, San Francisco, Mountain View, Santa Cruz, and now San Diego. In 2012, Dr. Sattler and her husband moved to Maui, where they were primarily their own business owners, and where they had the opportunity to enjoy the ocean waters of the islands year-round. Dr. Sattler most enjoyed paddling outrigger canoe recreationally with Maui Canoe Club, where she learned how to paddle properly and how to be fully immersed mindfully in nature. After six years living in Hawai’i, Dr. Sattler and her husband returned to California to settle in San Diego.
Dr. Sattler believes in the transformative healing power of a strong therapeutic alliance. Therapy offers the experience of truly being known by another: to be heard, to be seen, to be valued. This is such an important piece of the human condition, and Dr. Sattler is honored to assist others in their healing and emotional growth.
