About Leslie Branden-Muller, Ph.D.

Let me tell you a little about myself…

I’ve been a child and adolescent psychologist in Chapel Hill since 1999. I work directly with children as young as pre-k and on up through high school. High schoolers may choose to continue with me via telehealth when they head off to college.

As a child therapist, I am active and creative. I find out what makes a child come alive and draw them in through their interests. Kids learn best when they are also having fun, in addition to feeling safe, connected, and understood. I help them understand what they are feeling and thinking, teach them strategies and skills, and help them enrich their connections to their family members. If we are dealing with school-related concerns, I connect, as appropriate, with teachers and counselors to get them on board with our approach.

I make sure parents are involved in the therapy in ways that are appropriate on a case-by-case basis. I don’t keep you guessing—I lay out early on what you can expect and how you’ll be involved. I facilitate good communication between parents and kids and make sure that parents feel equipped to help carry the skills and strategies that we are working on in therapy into the home.  

With teens, along with careful listening, trust-building, and validating their perspective, I’m also likely to explicitly introduce therapeutic tools that can help guide them toward the results that they want.

As a mom myself,  I know the challenges that come with parenting (not just the joys!) and what it’s like parenting without a playbook.

In addition to being a seasoned therapist and a parent, I’ve had many other experiences that contribute to what I can offer you. Please take a look at the bullet points below for the highlights of my work.

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Here are some things you might be curious about.

  • License.  I am licensed to practice psychology in the state of North Carolina (NC# 2617) and am a Certified Health Services Provider. I am also a licensed PSYPACT provider. A PSYPACT (Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact) provider can provide telehealth therapy across state lines in participating states. If you are out of state and are wondering if I can work with you, click here to see if your state is active in PSYPACT.

  • Education.  I earned my Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology in 1994 from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, and my M.S. in Psychology, also from Rutgers, in 1990. I did my clinical internship in the Child and Adolescent Program at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ)-Newark. I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1984, where I majored in Psychology and minored in French. I am a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

  • Memberships.  I maintain membership in the following organizations: American Psychological Association (APA), Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (APA Division 53), North Carolina Psychological Association (NCPA), and Division of Independent and Professional Practice of NCPA.

  • Highlights of my work.  Here's an overview of places I've worked and kinds of work I've done.  I'd be happy to share a curriculum vitae with you if you're curious to learn more about any of these things.

    • Therapy and Assessment.  I have worked with children, adolescents, and their parents in both private practice and community mental health, providing therapy and assessments (testing). I have helped children and families address a wide range of issues; as a lead counselor and parent trainer at a specialized summer camp for children with ADHD, I helped kids improve their social skills, problem solving skills, and impulse control. I have experience doing therapy with college students and adults as well. 

    • Consultation and Research.  I have worked with several grant-funded, research-based projects, at UNC's FPG Child Development Institute and at Duke's Center for Child & Family Policy, whose goals were to promote preschool children’s readiness for kindergarten by enhancing their social-emotional development, decreasing their oppositional and aggressive behaviors, and increasing their early literacy and math skills. I was the lead developer on one of the curricula that we implemented. I was also involved with these types of projects at the elementary and middle school levels while in graduate school. These experiences, in which I spent extensive time in classrooms, give me special insight into school-related therapeutic issues. In addition, in recent years I provided consultation to ABA therapists who worked with children on the autism spectrum.

    • Teaching.  I have taught at the undergraduate and graduate levels at universities including Bryn Mawr College, Rutgers University, and the University of Wyoming. I have also supervised graduate students who were training to be therapists and supervised undergraduate student research.