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Given the gyrating stock market and constant chatter about a recession, it's no wonder that investors are anxious. Officials at Lexington Wealth Management believe they have an answer for jittery clients - a psychologist, Szifra Birke, who is called on as needed to handle emotional situations.

We've watched them, learned from them, been inspired by them. In our own backyards, they caught our attention and taught us to go after dreams...They're Greater Lowell's most fascinating people of 2007, as determined by The Sun's staff...7. Szifra Birke -- Money can be a lightning rod for emotions. That's where Szifra Birke comes in.

“For many people who come into wealth suddenly — whether they win the lottery, receive an insurance settlement or an unexpected inheritance — if they have not acquired good money skills prior to this windfall, often they struggle and make poor choices,” Birke said.

Szifra Birke's role at Lexington Wealth Management Inc. is that of a “wealth counselor” or “financial behavioralist specialist.” The job involves an “understanding the complexity of the interplay between money and values, and money and emotions,” Ms. Birke said.

Financial advisers are realizing they have to deal with more than just dollars and cents when helping their clients. Some are hiring psychologists and other counselors to help them understand the emotions behind their clients' views on money.

Wealth can be overwhelming. Now there's a new breed of counselor to help. We all know that money is an emotionally charged subject. Families disintegrate over it, kids go astray, friendships are strained. No one wants to talk about salaries, inheritances, or windfalls, and having more money than you expected can seem almost as difficult as having less.

Life planning and taking a holistic approach to finances are in vogue now, but Lexington Wealth Management, based in Boston and Manhattan, has taken it a step further and recently engaged the services of a licensed therapist with a speciality in wealth counseling.

Psychologist and financial behavior consultant Szifra Birke has been put on retainer at Lexington Wealth Management. She will counsel staff members and clients about the emotional factors involved when people accumulate or otherwise come into large amounts of money.

Lexington Wealth Management, a leading wealth management and investment consulting firm for high net worth individuals, today announced it has formalized a service agreement with Szifra Birke, a licensed therapist with a specialty in wealth counseling.