Dr. Aking

Dr. Marlene Aking, MD is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (Psychiatry). Born in Trinidad, she pursued her medical education at The University of the West Indies, obtaining her MBBS degree followed by a specialty in Family Medicine. However, her work exposed her to patients who needed Psychiatric attention, an area often overlooked and under-supplied in our system of healthcare. Motivated by a strong desire to help in this need, Dr. Aking decided to pursue an additional specialty. She then completed a residency in Psychiatry at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Washington, DC. 

During her training, Dr Aking found that listening to patients, correcting their maladaptive ways of thinking, and providing emotional support, was a natural fit and came easily to her. She realized that working with Psychiatric patients provided the kind of rewarding work she was interested in. In her work, Dr. Aking continues to use psychotropic medications to improve outcomes in biologically based psychiatric illness but believes Individual therapy to be a mainstay of treatment. 

While primarily using principles of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), she is quite familiar with other schools of thought and employs them as a framework, where indicated. These skills allow her to be effective by being able to establish a strong and therapeutic relationship with her patients. 

Dr. Aking has traveled extensively, and been exposed to a variety of cultures. This has allowed her to develop a deeper understanding of people and how to best help those in her care. When not working, she likes to cook, read, and spend time with her family and many friends around the World.