Irit Felsen

Based in the United States for the past 21 years, Irit Felsen, Ph.D., retains deep ties to her native Israel. Irit Felsen earned her Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of Haifa and her Master’s in Clinical Psychology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem before traveling to Germany and the United States to complete her postgraduate and postdoctoral training. Pursuing extensive studies in Israel, Dr. Irit Felsen worked as a Group Co-Therapist at Rafiach Psychogeriatric Hospital in Haifa. She pursued a practicum in Clinical Psychology in the Psychiatric Ward of Hadassa Hospital in Jerusalem. Dr. Felsen received specialized training in group psychotherapy with the Psychology Section of the Israeli Defense Forces at the military academy in Jerusalem. She completed an internship in Clinical Psychology at Eitanim, a psychiatric hospital connected with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Dr. Felsen also worked part-time as a Group Psychotherapist who counseled single-parent families in Jerusalem through an organization called Na’amat-Pioneer Women. Before leaving Israel to obtain her doctorate, Dr. Irit Felsen taught courses in developmental psychology and introductory psychology at Assaf Harofeh Hospital School of Nursing in Givataim, Kaplan Hospital School of Nursing in Rehovot, and Hadassa School of Nursing in Jerusalem. Following the completion of her doctorate studies at the University of Hamburg and a fellowship at Yale Psychiatric Institute, Dr. Irit Felsen pursued extensive research and oversaw a private practice in New Jersey. However, given her specialty in trauma recovery, especially among Holocaust survivors and their children, Dr. Felsen occasionally returns to her homeland to lecture. She spoke on “Transgenerational Transmission of Holocaust Trauma” at the 1998 AMCHA Conference held in Jerusalem that focused on working with Holocaust survivors. In 2004, she again traveled to Jerusalem to give a talk on “The Research Project: Expectations and Findings” at the Ma’ale Hachamisha Hotel. Two years later, Dr. Felsen presented a lecture, “Long-Term Effects of PTSD: Denial and Recognition” at the Reuth Medical Center in Tel Aviv. Dr. Felsen was co-Principal Investigator in a study of chronically hospitalized Holocaust survivors, together with Dr. Laub from the Yale University Trauma Study Group.