Hi, I'm Dr. Ximena Flanders, a licensed pediatric psychologist who loves working with kids, teens, and young adults. I believe therapy should feel welcoming, judgment-free, and genuinely helpful — a place where young people and their families feel heard, understood, and supported. My approach is warm, practical, and grounded in the latest research, so the strategies we build together actually work in real life. Alongside my clinical work I've published widely, presented at national and international conferences, and shared my expertise through guest lectures and the media.
Studies
Dr. Flanders began her academic journey at the University of Central Florida before earning her doctorate from Nova Southeastern University and completing both her residency and fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Between 2012 and 2018, she was a faculty professor and clinical supervisor at Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore, Maryland.
In 2018, Dr. Flanders came home to South Florida and joined Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital in Hollywood as a pediatric psychologist. In 2020, she opened her own private practice, South Florida Pediatric Psychology, in Coral Springs — a space designed to feel calm, safe, and welcoming for kids, teens, and young adults.
Experience
For over a decade, Dr. Flanders has helped children, teens, young adults, and their families through evidence-based care that meets young people right where they are. As a pediatric health psychology specialist, she looks at the whole person — how thoughts, feelings, behavior, relationships, and physical health all connect. Many of the young people she works with are also navigating acute or chronic medical conditions like chronic pain, cancer, diabetes, GI disorders, or injury, and she helps them build real coping skills to feel more like themselves again.
What she loves most is helping kids and young adults face tough medical challenges with confidence — strengthening their coping tools and resilience so they can thrive medically, socially, emotionally, and in their relationships.
Personal
Away from the office, Dr. Flanders is a devoted mom, wife, daughter, sister, and friend — and yes, an aspiring embroiderer — who brings that same warmth and dedication to every young person she works with.