Hi! I'm Jessika Talavera
Learn About My Work
My work focuses on the integration of science and human connection.
I hold a doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Carlos Albizu University in San Juan, with a background in evidence-based psychotherapies for the treatment of anxiety, psychological trauma, ADHD, and the emotional challenges of modern life.
Over the years, I have trained in various therapeutic models, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP), Mindfulness-Based Therapies, Prolonged Exposure Therapy, Cognitive Processing Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Behavioral Activation, CBT for insomnia, and Social Skills.
During my career, I worked for 20 years at the Veterans Administration in San Juan, where I was part of interdisciplinary mental health and rehabilitation programs. There, I also supervised and trained new generations of professionals in psychology, psychiatry, and neurology.
Today, that experience is integrated into my private practice and at the González & Talavera Clinical Institute, which I founded with my husband, psychiatrist Dr. Mario González. From this institution, we have developed a model of care that combines scientific rigor, clinical sensitivity, and a profoundly humanistic approach to psychological treatment.
We also created Mental Health Bands, a line of therapeutic tools designed to support emotional processes beyond the therapy session.
I believe that psychotherapy doesn't just happen in what is said, but in what is experienced within the therapeutic relationship. It is in that space, between two people, that the possibility of change emerges.
My Vision
Enhance the value of psychotherapy by training on interventions that really work and drive change in people.
My Mission
Teaching the art of psychotherapy under a learning model based on clinical competencies, where the therapist can apply this knowledge in their daily practice.
Dra. Cristina González
“Dra. Talavera is distinguished, among her many talents, by offering cutting-edge workshops that have advanced the teaching of clinical psychology in Puerto Rico. Her innate ability to captivate an audience is combined with her ability to create a dynamic, creative, experiential, interactive and open learning space. It incorporates their expert knowledge of theory and evidence-based practice in a unique and sagacious way that enables their participants to have a comprehensive teaching experience.”
Dr. Marcos Reyes
During the past 10 years, Dra. Talavera has been dedicated to studying new therapeutic modalities in the United States and Europe, studies that have led her to distinguish herself as a pioneer in the expansion of contextual therapies in Puerto Rico. He has published articles on topics related to evidence-based psychotherapies and fidelity of psychological treatments. With its robust background in practices based on scientific evidence, it has managed to pragmatically integrate the areas of knowledge and application of competencies and fidelity of treatments in the field of clinical psychology among students and health professionals, thus promoting the highest degree of excellence in the practice of psychotherapy.
