Angela Breidenstine, PhD

Angela (Angie) Breidenstine, PhD, is a senior psychologist in the ADHD and Behavior Disorders Center and the Anxiety and Mood Disorders Center at the Child Mind Institute in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has specialized training and experience in the area of infant and early childhood mental health.

With more than two decades of experience, Dr. Breidenstine partners with children, adolescents, and parents to address anxiety, PTSD and other stressor-related disorders, ADHD, behavior problems, early childhood emotional and behavioral difficulties, attachment disorders, parent-child relationship challenges, parenting concerns, sleep problems in childhood, mood-related issues, and selective mutism. She has worked in various settings, including outpatient mental health clinics, inpatient psychiatric units, and medical centers.

Dr. Breidenstine combines evidence-based therapeutic approaches with a warm, collaborative, and respectful style. She has certification in multiple evidence-based therapies, including Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP), Circle of Security (COS), and Preschool PTSD Treatment (PPT), a trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy. Dr. Breidenstine is also certified as a Within-Agency Trainer for PCIT. She has advanced training in evidence-based therapies such as SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions), Parent Management Training (PMT), and Parent-Child Interaction Therapy for Selective Mutism (PCIT-SM). She continues to expand her practice by incorporating elements of third-wave cognitive behavioral therapy approaches, including acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). Dr. Breidenstine is a trained teacher of Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) and Self-Compassion Training for Healthcare Communities (SCHC).

In addition to her clinical work, Dr. Breidenstine has presented on topics such as infant and early childhood mental health, attachment, development, trauma, anxiety, cultivating wellness, self-compassion, and behavior management. She has led workshops for parents, educators, clinicians, child protective service workers, and foster parents. She has supervised psychology externs, interns, postdoctoral fellows, and psychiatry residents, led intensive training programs, and co-authored scholarly publications and book chapters on infant mental health, trauma, attachment, and foster care. Dr. Breidenstine has also worked extensively with community partners, such as the Louisiana Children’s Museum in New Orleans, to develop programming for young children and their parents.

Before joining the Child Mind Institute in 2022, Dr. Breidenstine spent over 16 years as a faculty member with Tulane University’s nationally recognized Infant Team, where she provided comprehensive mental health services for infants and young children involved in the child welfare system due to abuse or neglect. She still holds an adjunct associate professor appointment in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Tulane University School of Medicine.

Dr. Breidenstine feels honored to partner with children and families to help them navigate challenges and build on their strengths, so that children can thrive at home, at school, in relationships, and in developing their sense of self. She recognizes that every child and family is unique and deserves individualized attention within the framework of evidence-based care. She strives to bring acceptance, curiosity, authenticity, and creativity into her partnership with children and parents.

• Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Tulane University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, New Orleans, LA
• Clinical Psychologist / Supervisor, Tulane Parenting Education Program, Tulane Infant Team, Tulane Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology Services, New Orleans, LA
• Faculty Member / Trainer, Tulane Institute of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, New Orleans, LA

• Postdoctoral LEND Fellow (Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental & Related Disabilities), Clinical Psychology, Early Childhood; Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
• Predoctoral Clinical Psychology Intern, Clinical Psychology, Child Track; Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Tulane University Medical Center, New Orleans, LA
• Assessment Supervisor and Therapy Extern; Center for Clinical Psychology Services, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
• Extern, Adolescent Inpatient Unit; Commonwealth Center for Children and Adolescents, Staunton, VA
• Assessment and Therapy Extern; Center for Clinical Psychology Services, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA

• PhD, Clinical Psychology, University of Virginia
• MEd, Clinical and School Psychology, University of Virginia
• MS, Psychology, Pacific Graduate School of Psychology
• BA, Psychology and English, Bridgewater College