About Claudia Miles, M.A., M.F.T.

Claudia Miles, MA, MFT, is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Marin County, California who devotes more than half her practice to working with clients who suffer from trichotillomania (compulsive hair pulling) and other body-based repetitive behaviors including skin picking. Both of these are far more common than once thought: In fact, most studies suggest they afflict from 2 to 4% of the population (see the Trichotillomania Learning Center website.) Claudia’s interest in trichotillomania is related to her own experience with the disorder, and after over 20 years of daily hair pulling, has been pull-free since 1989.

She currently leads four therapy groups for people with trich (including one for teens), as well as working with clients individually (see the Trichotillomania page for therapy group schedule.) She has led workshops on trich for the Trichotillomania Learning Center (TLC) in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Northern California, Kansas City and Seattle.

In addition to issues relating to trich, she works with clients on life issues such as self-esteem, relationships, grief, divorce, depression and body image.

Background

Before becoming a therapist, Claudia worked for nearly a decade in the music and film industries in her hometown of Los Angeles, and as a freelance writer and editor. She attended UCLA as an undergrad, receiving her B.A. in English literature in 1990. She has found that her background in the arts and love for literature has added an unexpected dimension and depth to her work as a therapist. Claudia’s approach is grounded in the Existential-Humanistic School of Psychology, though she incorporates elements of mindfulness, psychodynamic psychotherapy, as well as some cognitive-behavioral techniques for pullers into her work, depending on the client’s needs.

She has developed a theory that TTM is quite similar to an addiction, a view which can provide a built-in map for recovery. To read about her view on TTM as an addiction, see the Articles page for reprints of two articles on the topic which were printed in "In Touch", The Trichotillomania Learning Center's website.

For more information, contact Claudia Miles at (415) 460-9737 or via email.at ClaudiaMilesMFT@gmail.com