Hilary Cooper, PH.D.
Dr. Cooper is a child, adolescent, and family psychologist and the founder of Clear Mind Psychology in Rye, New York. For over 30 years, she has worked closely with children, teens, parents, and families—helping them navigate emotional challenges, developmental transitions, and complicated family dynamics with compassion, clarity, and practical tools that truly make a difference.
Approach
Dr. Cooper’s work is grounded in evidence-based, developmentally informed care that is tailored to each child and family. She emphasizes helping children understand their strengths, build emotional awareness, and develop practical tools for managing challenges without being defined by a diagnosis.
Her approach also prioritizes reducing stigma around mental health, supporting parents in feeling less overwhelmed or self-blaming, and focusing on strategies that are both research-backed and realistic for everyday family life. She believes in helping families cut through confusion and build clarity, confidence, and connection.
She integrates a range of modalities, including CBT, DBT, ACT, SPACE, DIR/Floortime, mindfulness-based interventions, and trauma-focused therapy.
Professional Background
Dr. Cooper holds a doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY), with prior studies in child development and special education at Tufts University and Bank Street College of Education. Her clinical experience spans hospitals, clinics, and schools across the tri-state area, including Bellevue Medical Center, Mount Sinai Hospital, and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.
She is also a parent of three adult children, an experience that informs her understanding of parenting across developmental stages and family life.
Areas of Support
Dr. Cooper specializes in working with children and adolescents experiencing anxiety, ADHD, depression, self-harm behaviors, emotional regulation difficulties, and stress related to family transitions, including divorce.
She also supports parents in managing the emotional demands of parenting, particularly when children are struggling, and co-developed a parenting curriculum focused on children with big emotions and improving parent emotional regulation and practical skills.
In addition, her work includes maternal mental health concerns such as birth trauma and infertility, as well as supporting families through divorce, including development of a structured weekend treatment program for children and adults.