SFDBT-Affiliated Therapists
Deborah Mitchell, Ph.D.
Dr. Mitchell is a licensed clinical psychologist as well as a DBT- Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician. Deborah completed Behavioral Tech’s Intensive DBT training in 2006 and the Advanced Intensive DBT training (taught by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D. and Shari Manning, Ph.D.) in 2008. In addition, she has been trained in DBT Prolonged Exposure (DBT PE), an empirically-validated treatment for trauma.
Deborah began her training in DBT in 2000. In 2002, she began co-facilitating DBT skills training groups in private practice and has been passionately learning and working within the DBT model ever since. In 2006, Deborah co-founded the San Francisco DBT Center with Mark Rosenthal, LCSW where she provides individual psychotherapy and co-facilitates several DBT skills training groups.
Mark Rosenthal, LCSW
Mark is a licensed clinical social worker as well as a DBT- Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician. Mark completed Behavioral Tech’s Intensive DBT training in 2006 and the Advanced Intensive DBT training (taught by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D. and Shari Manning, Ph.D.) in 2008. In addition, he has been trained in Prolonged Exposure Therapy, an empirically-validated treatment for trauma.
Mark was introduced to DBT in the mid 1990’s and began applying the skills in his position as clinical director at the largest homeless shelter in San Francisco. From 2000 to 2006, Mark worked at the Partial Hospitalization Program at University of California, San Francisco's Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute (LPPI). At LPPI, Mark applied DBT with individual patients and supported their implementation in group settings. Mark resigned from LPPI in 2006 to co-found the San Francisco DBT Center where he provides individual psychotherapy, group psychotherapy, and co-facilitates several DBT skills training groups. He also provides DBT training to groups of clinicians throughout the Bay Area.
Francie Burkhard, LMFT
Francie is a licensed marriage and family therapist as well as a DBT- Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician. She completed Behavioral Tech’s Intensive DBT training in 2012 and the Advanced Intensive DBT training (taught by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D.) in 2014. In addition, Francie has been trained in DBT Prolonged Exposure (DBT PE) to address trauma and Radically Open DBT (RO DBT) to work with clients who struggle with emotional over-control.
Francie received her masters and got her training in Chicago, IL. She worked as a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor in both community mental health and private practice settings in Chicago from 2000-2009. Francie relocated to the Bay Area in 2009, where she earned her Marriage and Family Therapist license. Since joining SFDBT in 2010 she has been co-facilitating skills groups, providing individual DBT and doing couples counseling from a DBT perspective. Her training is in cognitive behavioral and psychodynamic therapy and she draws from both in order to fit the unique needs and circumstances of each client. Francie has additional expertise in working with women who are pregnant and post-partum and enjoys working on parenting techniques.
Amber Jenkins, Ph.D., MBA
Dr. Jenkins is a licensed clinical psychologist in addition to having a Masters in Business Administration. She is a DBT- Linehan Board of Certification, Certified Clinician. Prior to achieving certification, Dr. Jenkins completed Behavioral Tech’s Intensive DBT training in 2012 and the Advanced Intensive DBT training (taught by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D.) in 2014. Dr. Jenkins has also been trained in Radically Open DBT (RO DBT) to work with clients who struggle with emotional over-control. In addition, she is also a trained EMDR therapist and completed EMDRIA's Approved EMDR Basic Training. As an EMDR therapist she provides Attachment-Focused EMDR using Laurel Parnell's methods.
Amber has experience using dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in community mental health settings, hospital settings, and private practice. In 2007, she began co-facilitating DBT skills training groups at Sharp Mesa Vista Hospital’s DBT Intensive Outpatient Program (DBT-IOP) in San Diego. Dr. Jenkins joined the San Francisco DBT Center in 2011 where she provides individual psychotherapy and co-facilitates several DBT skills training groups.
Jennifer Tan, LCSW
Jennifer is a licensed clinical social worker as well as a DBT- Linehan Board of Certification, Certified DBT Clinician. Jennifer completed Behavioral Tech’s Intensive DBT training in 2013 and the Advanced Intensive DBT training (taught by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D.) in 2014. In addition, Jennifer has been trained in DBT Prolonged Exposure (DBT PE) to address trauma, Radically Open DBT (RO DBT) to work with clients who struggle with emotional over-control, and Adolescent DBT.
Jennifer has worked with adolescents, adults, and families in mental health since 2003. She received her MSW from USC in Los Angeles and was introduced to DBT while running an adolescent outpatient substance abuse program partnered with the juvenile probation system in Contra Costa County. She began co-facilitating DBT skills groups and integrating DBT skills into her practice in 2012, and in 2013, she joined the SFDBT Center. She appreciates working with a wide variety of clients from diverse backgrounds and particularly enjoys DBT work with young adults. She currently co-facilitates DBT skills training groups and provides individual therapy from a DBT perspective.
Maria C. Esteve, LMFT
Maria is a bilingual (Spanish and English) licensed marriage and family therapist. She completed East Bay Behavior Therapy Center’s DBT training in 2016 and the Advanced Intensive DBT training in 2017 both taught by Charles Swenson, PhD.
Maria received her masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of San Francisco. She specializes in teens and young adults, ages 12-30 years old. From 1999 through 2012, she worked in both community mental health and middle and high schools in Dallas, Texas, San Diego and the Bay Area. Maria’s training in DBT began in 2009 while working at a court-mandated intensive outpatient program for adolescent sex offenders in Daly City. In 2012 she opened SF Children’s Therapy while concurrently working at Woodleaf Eating Disorder Center. In 2016 Maria decided to take her training in and passion for DBT to the next level and became an adjunct therapist at the San Francisco DBT Center. In addition to DBT, Maria draws upon her experience as a trained EMDR therapist who was trained by the Parnell Institute, ACT, and family systems therapist to meet the individual needs of her clients.
Allyson Troxel-Galang, Psy.D.
Dr. Troxel-Galang is a licensed clinical psychologist. Throughout her graduate training, she acquired experience in CBT, ACT, DBT, and mindfulness-based therapies in outpatient community mental health settings. Dr. Troxel-Galang began providing DBT with individual clients while working at a community-based CBT clinic. While working as a behavior coach at the East Bay Behavior Therapy Center she developed a greater passion for DBT as she delivered individual skills training to supplement clients exposure therapy. She has also been trained in RO-DBT to work with clients who struggle with emotional over-control.
Dr. Troxel-Galang also has a passion for working with adults who have suffered from trauma. She has previously worked at the Bay Area Trauma Recovery Clinic, offering low-fee evidenced-based treatment to clients with multiple symptoms of trauma. There she gained supervised experience utilizing Prolonged Exposure (PE), EMDR, ACT, and Emotion Efficacy Therapy (EET) with clients who are healing from trauma. Dr. Troxel-Galang joined the San Francisco DBT Center in 2019 where she provides individual psychotherapy and co-facilitates DBT skills training groups.
Suzanne Bernier, LMFT
Suzanne is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She completed Behavioral Tech’s DBT Foundational Training in 2024. Also trained in EMDR, Suzanne focuses much of her work on assisting clients in healing from trauma.
Since completing her Masters in Counseling Psychology in 2007, Suzanne has divided her time between private practice and school-based counseling work, most recently at The Bay School of San Francisco. Her approach is eclectic, formed by her training in both cognitive behavior and psychodynamic modalities, yet remains flexible and client-centered. Suzanne joined the SF DBT Center in 2024 for additional DBT training and is currently working with comprehensive DBT clients, both adults and adolescents, and helping to launch the Adolescent DBT Program at SF DBT. Suzanne is passionate about working with individuals from adolescence to adulthood, and has expertise in working with parents providing consultation, support and psychoeducation.