- Anxiety and stress
- Blended family issues
- CBT and mindfulness
About Dora
Dora Smith is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with nine years of experience practicing in Virginia and South Carolina. She works with people facing anxiety, stress, depression, relationship strain, grief, and addiction concerns. Dora also lists blended family issues among her focus areas. She uses straightforward conversation and practical skills to help people manage current problems.
Her sessions often begin by identifying what matters most right now. She listens for immediate coping needs and for patterns that keep causing trouble. Dora draws on Client-Centered approaches to follow the client’s lead, and she adds cognitive behavioral strategies to challenge unhelpful thoughts and behaviors.
She also uses elements from Dialectical Behavior Therapy and mindfulness to teach distress tolerance and present-moment awareness. Motivational Interviewing appears in her work when someone wants change but feels stuck. Narrative therapy techniques help people reframe painful experiences and notice alternative stories about themselves.
People who contact her typically want practical tools and steady support during transitions. That can include becoming a stepparent, merging households, co-parenting challenges, or loyalty conflicts in blended relationships. Dora pays attention to spiritual concerns when clients raise them, and she aims for conversations that connect daily life with long-term goals.
Her practice balances talking and skill-building. Sessions move between exploring feelings, testing small changes, and practicing new ways of responding. The result is a focused, approachable way to address the pressures of blended living and other life changes.
How Dora’s approaches translate to online sessions
Client-Centered Therapy focuses on the client’s perspective. The therapist follows what the client brings, listens carefully, and helps clarify goals. This approach supports people who need a respectful, conversational way to work through relationship and life changes.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) breaks problems into thoughts, feelings, and actions. It teaches concrete skills for shifting unhelpful thinking and testing small behavioral changes. CBT is often useful for anxiety, depression, and stress related to blended household challenges.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) offers tools for handling strong emotions and improving interpersonal effectiveness. Simple DBT skills can help with distress tolerance and communication when co-parenting or adjusting to new routines.
Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will discuss goals, try techniques, and adapt methods based on what helps most. Clients and therapist decide collaboratively which strategies fit the situation and preferences.
The biography does not list specific session formats, so confirm which online options are available before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into daily life, for example by reducing travel time, allowing shorter check-ins during a break, or avoiding the need to be on camera for the whole session if that helps with concentration. Ask about formats and scheduling when you sign up so sessions match your routine and needs.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
9+ years
Listed in
Virginia, South Carolina
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does she address?
Dora works with stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, grief, relationship and family-related concerns, and related issues such as attachment and caregiver stress.
How does she approach therapy?
She uses Client-Centered methods to follow what the client brings, and combines CBT, DBT, mindfulness, motivational interviewing, and narrative techniques to teach skills and reframe difficulties.
What is her clinical background?
She has nine years of experience practicing as a therapist in Virginia and South Carolina and has worked with adults facing life transitions and relationship strain.
What are her credentials and where is she based?
She holds the LPC credential and practices in Virginia; she is also licensed in South Carolina as noted in her profile.
Can I work with her if I live outside the US?
Sessions are offered in English and she accepts international clients; confirm any licensing or regulatory questions before booking across borders.
What session formats are available?
Current session formats are not specified in the biography; please confirm which formats are offered before scheduling.
How are fees handled?
Cost varies by location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time; check the platform details for exact pricing information.
How do I begin working with her?
Choose the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session to get started.
Online talk therapy is for adults and is not emergency care, mediation or legal advice. If you or a child are in danger, use the emergency numbers. Find someone else by name.