About Me


I have been in the private practice of psychodynamic psychotherapy, psychoanalysis, and marriage, family, and child counseling for more than 30 years, specializing for much of that time in the treatment of eating disorders. I hold both Ph.D. and Psy.D. degrees in Psychoanalysis from the Newport Psychoanalytic Institute in Orange County, California, and a Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University. My doctoral dissertations were both on the subject of eating disorders.

Dr. Alitta Kullman PhD


I am the author of a professional journal article entitled “The Perseverant Personality: A Pre-attachment Perspective on the Etiology and Evolution of Binge/Purge Eating Disorders,” ( Psychoanalytic Dialogues, 2007). It proposes that people with cyclical eating disorders have learned to “think” with their bodies, and share a unique and heretofore unidentified personality organization—a “perseverant” personality—that fosters the development of their eating disorders. My book on the same subject--for professionals and mainstream readers alike--is entitled “Hunger for Connection: Finding Meaning in Eating Disorders ," and will be released for publication by Routledge on January 11, 2018.


While treating eating disorders is my passion, I also very much enjoy working with all aspects of the human psyche. I have been a California Licensed Marriage, Family, and Child Therapist (MFT 5793) for more than 30 years, and I love working with couples and families. I am a Training and Supervising Psychoanalyst and have served as a member of the faculty and Board of Directors of the Newport Psychoanalytic Institute. I have taught courses in eating disorders and Critical Thinking and Writing, and supervised doctoral and MFT students and candidates. I have also enjoyed planning for the Center and spearheaded a “Salon Series” of informal discussions for people interested in contemporary psychoanalytic ideas.

I am a graduate of the New Directions in Critical Thinking and Writing program of the Washington Center for Psychoanalysis, and I love writing and helping others develop their innate capacities for expression in prose and poetry. Earlier in my career, I was the president of my own executive search firm and I still enjoy consulting with management and individuals in managing their working lives. I am a student of meditation, mindfulness, and mysticism, and integrate these body/mind concepts into my life and practice.


I am a member of the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP), the International Association of Relational Psychoanalysts (IARPP), and the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT). I am in private practice in Newport Beach, California.

I look forward to meeting you!