My work meets you at the intersection of:
- Anxiety that lives in the body: bedtime dread, stomachaches, irritability, shutdown, spiraling thoughts, “I can’t” moments
- Neurodivergence across development: autism/ADHD questions, executive-function strain, sensory overwhelm, masking, school friction, burnout
- Sleep and emotional regulation: insomnia, nighttime anxiety, sleep-related avoidance, late-night spirals, mornings that start already behind
- Tools that translate to real life: home routines that actually stick, school stress support, family patterns, daily functioning, caregiver steadiness
Support that fits your child’s brain — so anxiety doesn’t get the last word.
Dr. Amanda Baker helps children, teens, and families when anxiety runs high, nights stretch long, and mornings start already behind. Her approach is shaped by years of hands-on work with the sleep–anxiety cycle, so care focuses on what keeps that loop going and how to interrupt it. Amanda is trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) and skilled in diagnostic interviews for autism and ADHD in children, helping families move from uncertainty to clarity and a practical plan forward. She also supports adults with insomnia and neurodivergence-related concerns.
Psychological Associate,
PSB 94029454 (California)
Dr. Amanda Baker, PhD
Insight matters, but so does relief. We work toward measurable shifts in sleep, anxiety, flexibility, and day-to-day functioning—using strategies you can actually sustain.
Change You Can Feel
When autism or ADHD is a question, clarity matters. I’m trained in diagnostic interviewing with children and use careful, structured clinical thinking to help families understand what’s going on—and what to do next.
Assessment-Skilled + Precise
Children and adolescents aren’t “small adults.” I consider nervous-system development, school demands, family context, identity development, and the realities of growing up right now—so care fits the stage of life, not just the symptom.
Developmentally Informed
You won’t be left guessing what I’m thinking. I’m engaged, direct when it helps, and always attuned—tracking patterns, naming what I see, and building a shared map of what’s driving symptoms and what will actually shift them.
Grounded + Collaborative
My Approach
- Child & adolescent anxiety, perfectionism, and chronic overthinking
- Sleep disturbance & insomnia (including the sleep–anxiety cycle)
- Neurodivergence (autism/ADHD), especially in children and adolescents
- Teen & emerging-adult development
- Adults: insomnia/sleep disruption (CBT-I) and neurodivergence-related support
Areas of clinical focus
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I)
- CBT for anxiety (including exposure-based strategies)
- Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Parent/caregiver-supported interventions (as appropriate)
- Emotion regulation and executive-function supports
- Developmentally informed, neuroscience-informed care
Advanced modalities
- Psychological Associate (CA), PSB 94029454, supervised by Dr. Christina Chick
- Postdoctoral Research Fellow, REMEDY Research Group, Florida International University
- Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles
- B.A., University of California, Berkeley
- NSF Graduate Research Fellow
- NIH T32 Graduate Research Fellow
TRAINING & CREDENTIALS
Amanda’s clinical foundation is built at the intersection of sleep and anxiety—how a nervous system that can’t downshift at night changes mood, focus, flexibility, and resilience the next day. Her work is shaped by applied research with children, teens, and families, and she brings that same rigor into the therapy room—tracking patterns, testing what helps, and refining the plan until the week starts to feel different. She brings the same principles to adults with insomnia, especially when sleep loss is amplifying anxiety or mood. When autism or ADHD is part of the picture, she brings diagnostic interviewing skill and precise clinical reasoning to help families move from uncertainty to clarity and next steps that actually fit.
Credentials & Expertise
