Cathy Bottrell, LICSW, LCSW

Cathy Bottrell is a licensed clinical social worker who uses straightforward, practical therapy to help people facing big life changes. She holds LICSW and LCSW credentials and brings 23 years of clinical experience in the District of Columbia.

She focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, depression, grief, and adjustments to illness. She also supports people dealing with relationship and intimacy concerns, addiction struggles, sleep problems, parenting strain, and career transitions. Her approach is calm and direct, with attention to what must change now.

Cathy relies on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy alongside Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and client-centered methods. She uses mindfulness tools and skills practice so people can notice patterns, test new behaviors, and build routines that stick. Sessions aim to make daily life easier and more manageable.

She has worked with concerns such as adoption and foster care issues, caregiver stress, chronic illness and pain, fertility and aging concerns, family of origin issues, abandonment, and forgiveness. Cathy also addresses ADHD, compassion fatigue, and coping through divorce or separation.

Her style is collaborative and paced to each person’s needs. Sessions involve clear goals, simple exercises to try between meetings, and regular check-ins on progress. The focus is on practical steps people can use right away to feel steadier and more in control.

Evidence-informed approaches for online care

CBT focuses on the link between thoughts, feelings, and behavior and teaches practical exercises to challenge unhelpful thinking and change routines. It is often used for anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and stress management.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) combines values-based work with acceptance strategies. It helps people make room for difficult feelings while taking steps toward a life they value, which can help with grief, chronic illness, and coping with change.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will listen to goals and daily challenges, then suggest one or a blend of approaches that fit a person's needs and preferences. This is a collaborative process with regular check-ins to adjust direction as life changes.

Online sessions are offered as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to match different situations. Video calls are useful for full conversations and exercises, phone sessions can work when bandwidth is limited, and chat or text can be a shorter check-in or a way to practice skills between meetings. These options make it easier to get consistent care around work, family, and medical appointments.