Dana Thomart, LMFT

Dana Thomart is a licensed marriage and family therapist practicing in California. She uses practical methods to help people manage stress, anxiety, low self-esteem, and depression. Dana focuses on clear goals and steady progress so people feel more capable in day-to-day life.

Dana combines cognitive behavioral techniques with a client-centered attitude to help people notice unhelpful thoughts and try different behaviors. She also draws on dialectical behavior approaches when emotions run high and people need skills for regulation and tolerance. Sessions aim to be straightforward and useful in everyday situations.

With 19 years of experience, Dana has supported people through life transitions, caregiving strain, and communication challenges. She pays attention to how control issues, forgiveness, and feelings of isolation shape a person’s choices. The work often includes small experiments between sessions and practical communication practice.

Parents looking for help with parenting stress will find focused, no-nonsense strategies to reduce overwhelm and rebuild confidence. Dana helps people break down large problems into doable steps and track small wins over time.

Her style is warm and nonjudgmental. She encourages questions and partners with each person to set the pace. Beginning therapy is a step forward, and Dana aims to make it as manageable as possible.

How Dana’s approaches translate to online therapy

Client-Centered Therapy centers the person’s experience and aims to create a respectful, listening space where concerns are named and priorities set. This approach helps people feel understood and more willing to try new strategies. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, focuses on spotting patterns of thought and behavior and then testing small, practical changes to reduce anxiety and improve mood. DBT offers specific skills for managing intense emotions, improving distress tolerance, and strengthening interpersonal effectiveness when relationships feel strained.

Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. Dana will talk with each person about their goals, preferences, and what has or hasn’t worked before. Together they decide which methods to try first and adjust plans as progress unfolds, keeping the work practical and grounded in the person’s day-to-day life.

Online formats such as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging make it easier to fit therapy into a busy schedule. Video sessions are useful for face-to-face conversation and skills coaching, phone sessions can be lower bandwidth and quicker to join, and messaging or live chat work well for short check-ins, homework review, or ongoing support between sessions. These options aim to increase flexibility and make it simpler to continue care when life gets busy.