- Stress and anxiety
- CBT and ACT practices
- Family and parenting
About Stephanie
Stephanie Southard is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in New York with 26 years of experience. She works with adults on common concerns such as stress, anxiety, depression, addictions, and issues around relationships and family. She also addresses life changes, grief, sleep problems, parenting strains, and questions about career and purpose.
Stephanie draws on practical, evidence-based methods in sessions. She uses cognitive behavioral techniques to help people notice and shift unhelpful thoughts that get in the way of clearer action. She also integrates acceptance and commitment ideas, attachment-focused work, client-centered listening, and skills from dialectical behavior approaches when they fit a person's goals.
In sessions she mixes talking with concrete exercises and role play. That can include practicing communication skills, trying new coping strategies, or rehearsing tough conversations. The focus is on what someone wants to accomplish and on small, manageable steps toward those aims.
Stephanie has experience with trauma, abuse, domestic violence, and family-of-origin issues. She is familiar with court, child protective services, psychiatric diagnoses, and medication topics, and will learn unfamiliar topics when needed to support someone.
She lives in New York and offers therapy in English. For people unsure about next steps, she supports figuring out immediate priorities and practical strategies to move forward with less overwhelm.
How therapeutic approaches translate to online sessions
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) encourages noticing thoughts and choosing actions that align with personal values. It can help when someone feels directionless after a job change or relationship shift by focusing on small steps toward what matters.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) works by identifying unhelpful thought patterns and testing alternative behaviors. It is often used for anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and habit change through practical exercises and skills practice.
Attachment-Based Therapy looks at patterns in close relationships and how early experiences shape trust and communication. It can be useful for people struggling with abandonment, relationship conflict, or family-of-origin issues.
Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will discuss goals and preferences and together decide which methods to try first. Sessions can be adjusted over time based on what is most helpful for the client's situation.
The biography indicates live chat, phone, video, and text as session formats. Confirm current session options before booking to ensure they fit your schedule and needs. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy day, allow shorter check-ins when needed, and offer alternatives when being on camera is difficult.
Areas of expertise
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
26+ years
Listed in
New York
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of problems does she help with?
She works with stress, anxiety, depression, addictions, relationship and family concerns, trauma and abuse, grief, sleep issues, anger, parenting struggles, career questions, bipolar and ADHD-related difficulties.
How does she approach someone feeling stuck?
She uses practical, evidence-based methods like cognitive behavioral techniques and acceptance strategies, paired with exercises and role play to help people test new ways of thinking and behaving.
How much clinical experience does she bring?
She has 26 years of experience working as a social worker and therapist in New York, including work involving trauma, domestic violence, and court or child protective systems.
What are her credentials and where is she located?
She is an LCSW licensed in New York and practices from New York state.
Can someone who lives outside the U.S. work with her?
Sessions are offered in English and she does accept international clients; confirm any cross-border details before booking.
What session formats are available?
The original biography lists live chat, phone, video, and text as offered formats; confirm the current session options before scheduling.
How are fees and payments handled?
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin a first session?
Use 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.