- CBT methods
- ACT techniques
- Mindfulness practice
About Lydia
Lydia Toay is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Missouri with five years of clinical experience. She works with adults facing anxiety, stress, relationship strain, and the unsettled feelings that follow major life changes. Lydia lists life purpose among her interests and often helps people who feel directionless after shifts in work, health, or relationships.
Her practice centers on client-centered care, meaning she prioritizes the person's experience and goals in sessions. She draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and mindfulness tools to help people notice patterns and try practical alternatives. Sessions are conversational and skills-focused rather than lecture-based.
People who come to her often want help with low self-esteem, attention challenges such as ADHD, grief, sleep problems, or anger. She also supports those dealing with addiction concerns, family-of-origin issues, and trauma or abuse. Lydia incorporates strategies for communication, boundaries, and managing overwhelming feelings.
Her approach blends short-term problem solving and longer-term skill building. She uses behavioral experiments, values clarification, and grounding or mindfulness practices to address both symptoms and what matters to the client. She also attends to caregiver stress, codependency, and intimacy-related issues when they arise.
Lydia aims to work collaboratively on concrete next steps. Sessions typically focus on what the person is dealing with now, practical coping tools, and small goals that can fit into everyday life.
How Lydia’s therapeutic approaches work online
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) emphasizes clarifying personal values and taking small actions that align with what matters. It helps people who feel stuck by focusing less on eliminating difficult thoughts and more on moving toward meaningful goals.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) looks at the links between thoughts, feelings, and behavior. Online CBT sessions often involve identifying unhelpful thinking patterns, testing them with practical experiments, and practicing new skills between meetings.
Finding the right approach is part of the work. Lydia treats approach selection as a collaborative process. Together they will review what feels most useful, try methods in session, and adjust based on how those tools fit the person's needs and preferences.
Confirm the available session formats before booking, since the biography does not list them. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, shorten travel time, and allow check-ins from different locations. Some formats also let people choose shorter or phone-based meetings when they need a quick skills review or a focused follow-up rather than a full session. Licensed professionals can adapt ACT and CBT exercises for virtual meetings so people can practice tools between sessions.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
5+ years
Listed in
Michigan, Missouri
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does she address?
She works with anxiety, stress, depression, grief, ADHD, relationship and intimacy-related concerns, addictions, trauma and abuse, and life changes.
How would she approach feeling stuck or directionless?
Her work is client-centered and collaborative. She uses CBT, ACT, DBT, and mindfulness to identify unhelpful patterns and build practical steps toward clearer priorities.
How much experience does she have?
Lydia has five years of counseling experience working with adults from diverse backgrounds on a range of concerns.
What are her credentials and where is she based?
She is an LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor) licensed in Missouri and practices there.
Can I work with her if I live outside the United States?
Sessions are offered in English and she does not accept international clients at this time.
What session formats does she offer?
Please confirm current session options before booking, as the biography does not specify which formats are supported.
How are costs handled for sessions?
Cost varies with location and services. Sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
What are the first steps to begin working with her?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If you are in danger, use the crisis numbers.