Lara Joynes-Whidden, LCSW

Lara Joynes-Whidden is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who practices with a clear, problem-solving focus. She uses practical strategies to help people manage mood, stress, and addiction concerns. Lara writes in plain terms and aims to make therapy feel manageable for people juggling busy lives.

She has worked in both outpatient and inpatient settings as well as in employee assistance programs. That range gave her experience with substance use, workplace stress, and family conflict. Her work includes helping people with depression, bipolar concerns, anxiety, and anger management.

In sessions she emphasizes collaboration. Clients can expect a mix of structured tools and open conversation. She draws from cognitive behavioral techniques alongside client-centered listening to identify patterns and try small changes.

Lara also uses motivational interviewing to support people working through addictions and habit changes. Narrative and psychodynamic ideas inform how she and a client make sense of personal history and recurring relationship patterns.

Her approach tends to be straightforward and goal-oriented. She helps people set practical steps for sleep, parenting, work challenges, and managing emotions. Lara brings three years of clinical experience and sees therapy as a team effort toward clearer next steps.

How Lara’s approaches translate to online therapy

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and reflecting so the person feels heard and understood; it helps when people need space to talk through family stress, grief, or identity concerns. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) emphasizes noticing unhelpful thinking and testing small behavior changes to ease anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and addiction-related urges. Motivational Interviewing concentrates on building a person’s own reasons for change and can be useful for substance use or process addictions like gambling or problematic internet use.

Choosing the right approach is collaborative. Lara will discuss goals, preferences, and what has or hasn’t worked before. Together they shape a plan that may combine CBT exercises, motivational techniques, and client-centered conversations to match each person's needs.

Online therapy offers flexible ways to keep progress moving. Video calls let you work face to face for skills practice and deeper conversation. Phone sessions are useful when bandwidth is limited or when you want to be off camera. Live chat and text-based messaging support brief check-ins, coaching-style feedback, and follow-up between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, parenting, and daily life while keeping the focus on clear, practical steps.