Board Certified Physician-Psychiatrist, Author & Speaker
Grant H Brenner MD DFAPA
“As a teacher, I see the work as educative. As a physician and healer, I see the work as curative, and learning to live fully with what cannot be changed. As a scientist, my curiosity drives me to understand to the deepest level possible.”
“I’m action-oriented and like to see change, but I also understand that many things come only in the ripeness of time, and rushing can be counter-productive.”
“I believe that most of us have a tremendous capacity for positive change, under the right conditions.”
About the Practice
With each of his patients, Dr Brenner looks for innate strengths and untapped areas of potential. He has found that many people have a wellspring of resilience and possibility they are often missing. He works dynamically and collaboratively with each patient to create a learning, healing, therapeutic environment in which to make great strides personally and professionally, with a focus on mind and body.
Dr Brenner’s methodologies draw upon a wide range of neuroscientific and psychological theories, as well as his personal and professional experience as a therapist, educator, entrepreneur, and psychiatrist. Fundamentally, his approach is psychoanalytic - which is the idea that listening and allowing our self-righting resilient processes to work are paramount, as is understanding developmental influences as part of refining one’s identity and sense of place in the world. Dr Brenner’s therapeutic approach is results driven but recognizes and respects the impenetrable role of time in the process of personal development. It has been his consistent finding that we all have an enormous capacity for positive change, when given the correct perspective and insight.
Dr Grant Brenner is experienced with cognitive-behavioral and other structured approaches, compassion-informed practice, meditative and body-oriented approaches, trauma-informed work, and a wide range of psychiatric theories and approaches. Fundamentally, his blended and highly personalized therapeutic approach helps to bridge and translate among multiple, seemingly contradictory perspectives, and find a common ground from which to spur forward momentum.
Dr Brenner is a board certified physician-psychiatrist and prescribes medications with a conservative evidence-based approach. He utilizes a comprehensive psychological and medical evaluation to make sure treatable issues are not missed, and will assist with referrals and communicate with other professionals in ensuring care is comprehensive.
A PERSONAL STORY
Dr. Grant Brenner grew up in a culture and family immersed in self-exploration, psychoanalysis, psychology, growth and change, science and curiosity. Early on, he felt a desire to become a therapist, and before that, a scientist. As he grappled with his own challenges and inner forces, he followed a meandering path from physics to psychology, from surgery to psychiatry, ultimately entering psychoanalytic training and private practice in 2002. He is an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at Mount Sinai Beth Israel in New York City, where he has taught and supervised for over a decade. Dr. Brenner is Board Certified in General Psychiatry and holds certificates in Psychoanalysis and Organizational Psychodynamics from The William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Psychoanalysis in New York City where he served in a variety of leadership roles. Dr. Brenner is on faculty at the Manhattan Institute for Psychoanalysis, where he teaches a seminar in the Neurobiology of Trauma.
With almost 20 years in private practice, Dr Grant Brenner has developed a creative, results-driven approach to help his patients understand themselves, identify and breakdown limiting patterns, and realize their most fulfilling and complete potential.
As a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (DFAPA), he has demonstrated exceptional dedication to advancing the field of psychiatry and mental health care.
Dr. Brenner specializes in the treatment of complex trauma, mood disorders, personality dynamics, and life transitions. He has extensive experience with Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), offering innovative neuromodulation treatments for mood disorders and other psychiatric conditions. Known for his integrative, evidence-based approach, he combines traditional psychiatric methods with cutting-edge research in neuroscience and trauma studies. His work emphasizes building resilience and fostering sustainable psychological growth.
Dr. Brenner completed his psychiatry residency at Mount Sinai and holds certificates in psychoanalysis and organizational dynamics from the William Alanson White Institute. He has advanced training in trauma, dissociation, and disasters through the NYU Postdoctoral Program in Psychoanalysis and the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation.
He holds faculty positions at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the Manhattan Institute for Psychoanalysis, where he contributes to the education and training of future mental health professionals. His academic work focuses on the interplay of trauma, resilience, and contemporary psychoanalytic approaches.
A prolific author and researcher, Dr. Brenner has published extensively on trauma, resilience, and relationship science. His books include:
Making Your Crazy Work for You: From Trauma and Isolation to Self-Acceptance and Love (co-authored with Mark Borg Jr. and Daniel Berry)
Relationship Sanity: Creating and Maintaining Healthy Relationships (co-authored)
Irrelationship: How We Use Dysfunctional Relationships to Hide from Intimacy (co-authored)
Creating Spiritual and Psychological Resilience: Integrating Care in Disaster Relief Work (co-edited with colleagues)
Disaster Psychiatry: Readiness, Evaluation, and Treatment (2nd edition, co-editor)
Dr. Brenner is also a leader in disaster response and serves on the Board of Vibrant Emotional Health, a national organization dedicated to mental health advocacy and crisis intervention. He is a creator of the MARCCD (Model for Adaptive Response in Complex Cyclical Disasters), a framework designed to enhance resilience and preparedness in the face of recurring crises.
In addition to his clinical and academic work, Dr. Brenner is active in mental health advocacy and media. He serves on the Board of Languages of Care, an organization focused on improving mental health communication across diverse communities. He is also the co-founder of the Mental Health Media Group, which is dedicated to mental health awareness and advocacy through film, the arts, and multiple media platforms.
He contributes regularly to Psychology Today through his widely read blog, ExperiMentations, where he explores the intersections of psychiatry, neuroscience, and human behavior.
Beyond his clinical work, Dr. Brenner is dedicated to public education and mental health advocacy. He hosts The Doorknob Comments Podcast, which delves into critical topics in mental health and psychotherapy. A sought-after speaker, he presents at professional conferences, serves as a media expert on psychiatric topics, and works to destigmatize mental health treatment.
Dr. Brenner lives in New York City and, outside of his professional work, enjoys photography as a serious amateur, finding creative expression through visual storytelling.
Distinguished Fellow of APA (American Psychiatric Association)
Fellow of NYAM (New York Academy of Medicine)
GAP Committee co-Chair (Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, Co-Chair of Disasters and the World Committee, Senior Fellow
Assistant Clinical Professor MSBI Mount Sinai Beth Israel
Faculty of Manhattan Institute of Psychoanalysis, Certificate Program in Trauma Studies, teaches advanced seminar on the Neurobiology of Trauma
Member of the Board of Directors, Vibrant Emotional Health
“The paradox of trauma is that it has both the power to destroy and the power to transform and resurrect.”
“Feeling real is more than existing; it is finding a way to exist as oneself... and to have a self into which to retreat for relaxation.”
“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.”