The Social Black Belt

Dr. Christopher Cortman is a licensed psychologist with over 35 years and 75,000 hours of facilitating psychotherapy. He is the author of four books about mental health, including Your Mind: An Owner's Manual for a Better Life: 10 Simple Truths That Will Set You Free; Take Control of Your Anxiety; and Keep Pain in the Past: Getting Over Trauma, Grief and the Worst Thing That's Ever Happened to You. In addition to his role as private practitioner and on-call psychologist for Venice Regional Bayfront Health, Dr. Cortman serves as founder and director of The Social Black Belt, a program aimed at developing social, emotional, and behavioral awareness in people of all ages, particularly children and adolescents. The Social Black Belt is a proud partner of the NFL Alumni Association.Using his unique blend of expertise and wit, Dr. Cortman has engaged audiences on nationally recognized television and radio programs, including on Disney Radio, MTV, and ABC, and he has used his respected voice to speak on issues of mental health alongside the likes of Tipper Gore, Jane Pauley, and Patrick Kennedy. For his efforts, Dr. Cortman was awarded the Reader's Choice Award for Best Psychologist by the Venice Gondolier Sun for six consecutive years (2013-2018) and the award for Outstanding Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest by the Florida Psychological Association in 2015. The proud father of three chronically unemployed children, all under the age of fourteen, Dr. Cortman lives with his partner in Sarasota, Florida.