Dr. Allison Bethea, MD

Dr. Allison Bethea trained as a Doctor of Clinical Psychology and brings two decades of clinical experience to her work in Maryland. She uses clear, practical strategies to help people manage stress, anxiety, mood changes, and life transitions. Dr. Bethea draws on familiar techniques such as cognitive behavioral therapy alongside mindfulness and solution-focused ideas.

Her sessions aim to be collaborative and straightforward. She looks for strengths people can use right away and helps them build simple habits that reduce distress. She often addresses how physical health and brain function relate to emotions and behavior.

Dr. Bethea has focused experience with attention deficit concerns and stress and anxiety management. She also has a history of supporting people coping with depression, grief, trauma, sleeping problems, anger, and self-esteem difficulties. She is familiar with working with people who have visual impairments and with parents of children who have special needs.

Her approach mixes practical skills and reflective work. Cognitive behavioral techniques are used to identify patterns and try new ways of thinking and acting. Mindfulness strategies are offered to help improve focus and reduce reactivity.

People who prefer direct, skills-based sessions alongside thoughtful exploration tend to find her style helpful. She offers sessions by video call, phone, live chat, or text messaging to fit different schedules and preferences. To begin, people complete a brief matching questionnaire and schedule a session according to availability.

How therapy approaches translate to online care

Dr. Bethea commonly uses cognitive behavioral therapy to help people spot unhelpful thoughts and test new behaviors, which can shorten distress and improve daily routines. Mindfulness therapy is offered to build attention and reduce reactivity through simple awareness exercises that can be practiced between sessions. Existential ideas are used to talk about meaning, values, and life choices when people face major transitions or questions about purpose.

Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the work. She will collaborate with each person to choose methods that match their goals, needs, and comfort level. That means adjusting focus over time based on what helps most, whether that is skill-building, reflection, or both.

Online sessions are available by video call, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging to provide flexibility. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and shared exercises, phone sessions can be easier when bandwidth is limited, and messaging or chat can fit short check-ins or quick skill practice. These options make it easier to keep therapy consistent around work, caregiving, or health demands.