Biography
Dr. Guerra’s unique approach draws on traditional psychotherapy,
Eastern philosophy, mind-body approaches, and the dramatic arts to
tailor treatments to his clients. His tireless pursuit of healing and
freeing people from negative behavioral patterns has led him down many
different avenues. Dr. Guerra is a psychologist, psychotherapist,
mindfulness meditation teacher, educator, executive coach, playback
theatre actor, author, and public speaker. “What unites this list is
a commitment and desire to address emotional suffering, and to address
the personal and professional effectiveness of individuals and
groups,” he says.
He has studied Western and Eastern approaches to wellness with equal
fervor, bridging the great thought divide between classical analysis
and more contemplative practices through a refreshingly pragmatic
“whatever works, for whom, when, and under what circumstances”
treatment approach. “I believe in solutions to problems so I prefer
to keep all options open and see how different schools of thought work
together,” he says. “I also believe that people have significant
inner resources and strengths that guide them toward healing and
growth.”
One fundamental of Dr. Guerra’s work is the mind-body connection. He
sees many physical ailments as having a strong relationship to the
ways people think. “A lot of people who live with a chronic pain or
other medical condition tend to hold on to a lot of stress in the body
and mind. This can contribute to depression and anxiety. Let’s say
there is a back injury and their career is compromised, but working is
a strong part of their identity. So now they may be frustrated and
angry, perhaps fighting with their spouse or loved ones, and taking a
lot of pain medication. They seek medical treatment and need surgery
and maybe the surgeon needs to remove a vertebrae, or fuse their
spine, and they’re still not back to work and they’re tense and
anxious and depressed. It’s a chicken and egg problem — the medical
problem may be upheld by anxiety and anxiety may exacerbate the
medical problem. They may go back to their physician and have multiple
surgeries because that may be all they know is available to them to
deal with the problem.”
Dr. Guerra maintains a successful private practice and an active
calendar as an executive coach. His breakthrough work in the corporate
sector helps companies see the value in developing their employees
across the matrix of organizations. He has coached over 500 managers
of top companies across the globe in leadership skills that include
gaining personal awareness, influencing, and learning better
self-management to be more effective leaders. “The connection between
executive coaching and clinical work is that aspect of human nature
that reaches for positive change and greater effectiveness,” he
explains. Dr. Guerra brings nearly twenty years of experience and distinguished
academic accreditation to his work. Dr. Guerra received a B.A. in
Psychology with an emphasis in behavioral and neuroscience research
from Franklin & Marshall College. He completed his masters and
doctorate degrees in Clinical Psychology from Indiana University of
Pennsylvania. He has completed a certificate program with the
Executive Coach Academy in New York City, is certified in the
WholeBrain Creativity NBI™ (Neethling Brain Instrument Assessments),
and is qualified to administer and interpret the Myers-Briggs
Personality Type Indicator© (MBTI©), the Bar-on Emotional
Quotient-Inventory (EQ-i©), and the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode
Instrument (TKI). Daniel is a member of the ORGDYNE Coach Consultants
Consortium. He was on staff as a rehabilitation psychologist at NYU
Medical Center: The Rusk Institute from 2000-2003, a faculty member at
The Albert Einstein School of Medicine from 2004-2011 and a consulting
psychologist for Beth Israel Medical Center from 2004-2011. In 2001,
he co-authored a manual that guides mental health clinicians on how to
address the needs of first responders to disasters based on the events
surrounding 9-11.