I can confirm other reviews stating he talks about himself, has poor time management and organization, and weirdly complained about how he can't afford a secretary(my current therapist uses a billing company). His responses to critical reviews on here are HIPAA violations and also a display of his ego. read more

Our high-functioning autistic adult was trapped in severe, debilitating anxiety for years. At the start of therapy he was on two antipsychotics and two mood stabilizers at the same time--just to function. We had already spent more than a decade (and hundreds of thousands of dollars) cycling through countless therapists, psychiatrists, and programs all over Los Angeles with no lasting improvement. What made us reach out to Steve Kassel was his past experience with high-functioning autism combined with his expertise in EMDR and other brain-based, biologically informed therapies. The results were nothing short of miraculous. Over the course of treatment, the crushing, debilitating anxiety gradually lifted and, astonishingly, completely disappeared. What's more, we were even able to safely taper and eventually discontinue every single medication--something we never thought possible. Mr. Kassel wasn't just effective; he was the first and only mental health professional who was able to connect with our individual. We genuinely believe Steve Kassel is a gift to individuals suffering from anxiety. He helped our family member in a way no one else could, and for that we will be forever grateful. We can't recommend Steve highly enough. read more

My wife and I tried this guy out for a few couple therapy sessions. He is extremely disorganized. Showed up 10 minutes late to both sessions and then spent the majority of the first session talking about billing and himself. Second session was so disorganized he switched subjects every two minutes and then started reading from some article. It was so weird. We didn't even get to the reason why he was there. We paid him for both sessions because he said he didn't want to bother with insurance but he then sent us an invoice and has been sending invoices several times with the most recent one saying past due. His billing is as disorganized as he is. read more

I had Mr. Kassel as a Therapist. He was an Excellent one. He would bring up information about Himself to relate to what I was going through. He also specializes in Biofeedback which is a wonderful tool also to indicate what a person is thinking and feeling. He works overtime to make sure that his clients are well taken care. Thanks for helping me along my Journey. This is why I could be a Therapist and still standing. read more

Unfortunately I had a very bad experience with Mr. Kassel. I would NOT recommend him. He arrived late to both of my therapy sessions, he talks about himself too much and to add insult to injury he charged me twice for one of our sessions. I saw Mr. Kassel for two sessions for help with anxiety and stress. He arrived late to both sessions. Both times he would call me 5 minutes before our appointment to let me know he was stuck in traffic and was going to be 15 minutes late. The first time I let it slide. When it happened the second time I asked Mr. Kassel if we could add my missed time to the end of the session. That was when he gave me a 10 minute diatribe over the phone that insurance doesn't pay him enough and that he doesn't make enough money on the sessions. Also during the therapy sessions Mr. Kassel would spend most of the time talking about himself and his own issues. I heard stories about his dating life and women he had courted. He droned on about his biofeedback research. None of which had anything to do with my issues. Also, DO NOT GIVE him your social security number or credit card number under any circumstances. He used my credit card number to double charge me for one of our sessions. I paid him cash at the time of service. Then a few weeks later he charged my credit card. read more

I took my young son to see Mr Kassel. He was late. The intial session was 90% about billing . The first and only comment he said to my son was a sharp ,"Put away your phone". Not the way to start a relationship. We left and certainly did not go back. read more

I owe a major debt of gratitude to Steve for compassionately guiding me and my children through a difficult period of transition. When I turned to Steve for help, he worked to understand my concerns and offered tools to work through my issues. Thank you Steve. You gave me the tools and support I needed to move forward in a positive direction. read more

Quick note: He has given some good insights in some of the conversations that we've had. I've been seeing Mr. Kassel since April. I was referred by my insurance since he was the only one (in my network) that did EMDR. However, we've only touch on EMDR once in the entire time that I've seen him. My first appointment went as usual. We talked, and I gave him background information as to why I was there. (While I have many issues I want to work on, I primarily went to him for EMDR.) We discussed goals that I would like to work on, and we did a little be of meditation work for my anxiety. The discussion of goals, however, seemed more like a formality, because as I will discuss later, we haven't really worked on any of my goals. Also, as others have mentioned, he does have a tendency to be late. It should also be noted that he doesn't make up for the time that he was late, so when the session ends, it ends. That was not the only issue that I noticed. He does have an issue with organization, although he has gotten better in the last few times that I saw him. On the second appointment, he lost the paperwork that I filled out on the first day. So, I had to fill out the paperwork again. He even misplaced my chart, so I had to start from scratch and tell him my issues again. On, the next two appointments, he again didn't have my chart. He always talked about how he doesn't have a secretary to handle the paperwork, because he doesn't get paid enough to have one. As mentioned earlier, setting goals at the beginning seems to only be a formality, because we haven't worked on any of the issues that we discussed. After the third or fourth session, each subsequent session seemed like just a chat with one of my bros. There was no structure or treatment plan.There was no time set aside to talk about the past week or anything on my mind. While I appreciate him checking in to see how my week went, that particular conversation seemed to drag on. The conversations were full of anecdotes and some generic advice. If it got silent, it got silent. It didn't matter. He was getting paid either way. Some of his advice, concerning my social anxiety, included things like, "Be confident", "Go out there and do it", etc. I was not given any tools (handouts, role play scenarios) to help me k get to that point. I was essentially being thrown into the deep end of the pool. I'm not even sure that he remembers why I'm there. He never refers back to his notes or my chart to see what we did in the last session. We just had random conversations. He loved to talk. He loved to talk so much so, that he had no problem telling me to shut up. He even tried to play it off like it was a joke. At the same time, he was cool with talking over me when I had things to say. There were times that I had things that I really wanted to say, but he talked so me that I was unable to get my thoughts out. So, we just left things at that. He is a good guy, but overall, in my opinion, he lost motivation to really help me with my issues, do to the fact that I'm not a cash paying customer. As we all know, insurance doesn't pay much, compared to cash paying customers. So, if you're paying by insurance, take what you can get out of it, but try to look elsewhere for other resources. read more

The other reviewer (Patrick) really hit the nail on the head, as I had a VERY similar experience. Only a few weeks ago, I found my best friends dead body after he committed suicide. I came to Steve Kassel for EMDR therapy, as I have a lot of trauma. He is far from me but I drove out to him because he was the closest in my network for insurance. 1. First session - He was 10 mins late & says he just needed a break... talked about himself... & ended 5 mins early. This was an intake before our EMDR. 2. Second session - Again 10 mins late. This time said he was eating. He then Talked about himself a ton...& completely forgot about the EMDR. Says we now didn't have time & spoke of how he can't afford a secretary to keep organized. Beyond the fact that this is highly unprofessional behavior... It also really hurt me that this man does not seem to care that I am in pain and came to him for help with serious trauma. I left feeling SO dropped. So no... I DO NOT recommend him. read more

I was referred to Mr. Kassel by a friend of mine because I was having some issues which I prefer to keep private. I found him very sympathetic and he really listened to me. What I really liked about his style is that he told me upfront that this doesn't have to be a long drawn out therapy that goes on and on. He was right. He gave me some very helpful and practical techniques to help me with my anxiety and I call those up when I need to. I may have to go back for a "tune up" now and then but he was able to zero in the issues, address them and tackle them. read more

It is my honor to recommend Steven Kassel LMFT as a wonderful therapist. Steven supervised me at The Children's Center of The Antelope Valley from 2000 to 2001. A center that specializes in working with victims of sexual abuse. Steven possessed a strong sense of ethics and exercised good judgment at all times. He is warm and caring to his clients, interns and all staff. I have learned many valuable skills through Steven's guidance, taking his ethics and having that endless drive to meet the needs of my clients. Melisa Fitzgerald LMFT. read more

Of all the therapists I've met, Mr. Kassel has been the most empathetic and helpful to me in resolving problems with my children.