Daily Inspiration: Meet Christopher Massey

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christopher Massey.

Hi Christopher, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
It all started one afternoon in late elementary school, as I was laying on my couch, watching Conan the Destroyer on KTLA5 in broad daylight. Something is wrong with me, I told myself, and whatever it is, watching this movie right now helps. Thus began my journey into both psychotherapy and film.

Turns out, I was a bit depressed. By high school, it was more than a bit. Post college, after a couple years work in film production, and a few bouts of therapy, I began to become fascinated with the world of psychology. A random in-between gigs job and a few more years of existential wander later, I found myself in grad school studying Clinical Psychology and on my way becoming a real live, licensed psychotherapist.

And here I find myself now, two decades into this truly rewarding career which brought me from posh Malibu rehabs, to non-profit community mental health clinics in Van Nuys, and finally to a lovely private practice on the lake with my amazing wife and business partner, the author and Psychologist, Dr. Haleh Massey. And just to bring it all full-circle, I am reentering the world of film by writing psychological horror screenplays that are currently on submission with several production companies. And though the afternoon KTLA showings of Conan the Destroyer have passed, I’ve still got it on Blu-Ray. And instead of lonely childhood screenings, they are now joy-filled ones I share with my kids.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Good things are rarely found at the end of smooth roads. Usually it’s the bumpy, scary ones that get us to the loveliest destinations. Other than the largest obstacle of conquering the previously mentioned depression, it has been the fascinating work environments that have provided the most frightening rollercoaster rises, falls, and hairpin turns. Whether it was working in an abandoned warehouse off Crenshaw shooting a Roger Corman movie about terrorist cult bank heists that occur during catastrophic earthquakes (!), or seeing clients in group homes, hallways, closets, sewers, schools, or poolside in Malibu, work has always provided unique challenges, particularly in terms of setting, and the range of humanity I have been privileged enough to encounter in such places.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
The work I get to do everyday hearing other people’s stories, and providing a safe space for them to share and make sense and meaning from them has been something that has provides a great deal of meaning to my life in the last two decades. My more recent source of pride is returning to the world of writing and film, completing two full novel manuscripts and two full feature-length screenplays, with more to come. I use the genres of psychological horror and grounded psychological thrillers to probe the depths of my characters and their stories. My goal as a writer is similar to my goal as a therapist. As a therapist, I specialize in a form of existential-humanistic therapy, known as Relational Gestalt Therapy, which I first encountered in grad school, then later studies both at the Pacific Gestalt Institute and in my own individual and group work with the amazing Dr. Gary Yontef. In the age of AI and pre-prescribed, form-heavy, so-called “evidence-based practices” and gimmicky, trademarked modalities, I provide what I believe is the true source of healing in therapy: an authentic human encounter. I try to provide this same humanism in my screenplays, and hopefully (producers, are you listening?), the films that will be made from them.

We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
That despite my didactic presentation of speech and my late middle-aged suburban appearance, I am a full fledged hip-hop nerd. I have been obsessed since the age of nine, when I first snuck Run D.M.C’s “Raising Hell” out of my sister’s record collection after hearing Kool Moe Dee and Doug E. Fresh on the dubbed tapes my friend Maurice brought with him when he moved to my little lily-white L.A. suburb from New York. (Thanks, Moe. I owe you one.)

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.masseytherapy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/denoyermassey/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-denoyer-massey-78948096/