April Barker-Casey, LISW

April Barker-Casey is a licensed independent social worker with over 25 years of practice in Ohio. She focuses on helping people who are dealing with stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, and mood challenges. April emphasizes that clients are the experts in their own lives and brings a steady, respectful presence to sessions.

Her work often centers on practical steps people can use between meetings. She draws on cognitive behavioral approaches to help people notice and change patterns of thinking that keep them stuck. She also uses client-centered and solution-focused methods that keep the person's goals in view and build on strengths.

April has broad experience with mood disorders, bipolar disorder, depression, panic and panic attacks, and other emotional regulation concerns such as anger and disruptive mood dysregulation disorder. She also supports people facing issues related to ADHD, dissociation, and the long-term effects of sexual assault and abuse.

Many referrals come from people struggling with relationship strain, family of origin issues, adoption and foster care challenges, or feelings of guilt, shame, isolation and low self-worth. She works with those coping with life changes and young adult issues as well. April incorporates motivational interviewing when people need help clarifying values and making change feel achievable.

Sessions aim to be straightforward and collaborative. April helps people set realistic goals, practice small changes, and track progress over time. She presents options clearly so clients can choose what fits their needs.

How April’s approaches work online

April often uses cognitive behavioral techniques to help clients notice unhelpful thoughts and try new behaviors. CBT is useful for anxiety, depression, panic, and stress because it breaks problems into smaller, manageable steps. Client-centered therapy is another foundation of her work and centers the person’s own goals and experience. This approach is about being heard and having the therapist follow the client’s lead. Motivational interviewing appears when someone needs help finding the motivation to change; it focuses on exploring values and building commitment rather than pushing advice.

Choosing the right approach is a team effort. April discusses goals and preferences during early sessions and adjusts methods based on what the person says is helpful. She combines approaches as needed so the work fits the client rather than forcing a single method.

Online sessions take place by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to make therapy flexible. Video is useful for longer talks and visual cues, phone calls can fit around busy schedules and need less bandwidth, and chat or text work well for brief check-ins or when typing feels easier. These options help people fit therapy into real life and maintain continuity between sessions.