Kristin Petersen, LICSW

Kristin Petersen is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker who focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, addiction struggles, mood shifts, and trauma-related concerns. She speaks plainly and works to make therapy feel practical and doable for people juggling work, family, or school. Kristin brings 13 years of clinical experience in Minnesota to each session and aims to help clients build coping skills they can use day to day.

Her approach is interactive and collaborative. She listens first, then helps people identify small, concrete steps that can ease symptoms like worry, low mood, sleep trouble, or impulsive behavior. Kristin combines techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy with client-centered and solution-focused methods to make plans that fit each person’s life.

Sessions commonly include talking through troubling thoughts and testing out healthier thinking patterns. She also works on behavior changes, decision-making around substance use, and ways to manage intense emotions. Kristin helps people address grief, relationship stress, parenting strain, workplace problems, and self-esteem concerns.

She has experience with trauma, domestic violence, postpartum depression, and self-harm concerns, and she supports people facing addiction and mood disorders. That background informs how she structures safety, pacing, and practical skill-building in therapy.

Kristin aims to create a respectful, compassionate space where clients feel heard. Together clients and she set clear goals and track progress using straightforward steps. Her goal is to help people build routines and skills that lead to more stable, manageable days.

Approaches that guide online sessions

Kristin uses cognitive behavioral therapy to help people notice unhelpful thoughts and change patterns that fuel anxiety or depression. CBT focuses on the link between thoughts, feelings, and actions and is useful for worry, low mood, sleep problems, and managing impulsive patterns.

She also practices client-centered therapy, which means sessions begin with the person’s concerns and priorities. The therapist listens with respect and follows the client’s pace while offering empathy and reflective feedback to boost self-understanding.

Motivational interviewing is another approach she draws on when someone is weighing change, such as reducing substance use or shifting a habit. That method helps people explore their own reasons for change and build motivation in a nonjudgmental way.

Choosing an approach is collaborative. Kristin will discuss options with each person and tailor techniques to goals, readiness, and daily life. She checks in about what feels helpful and adjusts plans as work progresses.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video works well for conversations that benefit from face-to-face contact, phone can be easier when bandwidth is limited, live chat suits quick check-ins, and messaging supports ongoing reflection between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into busy schedules and to continue work even when life gets hectic.