Kara Anderson, LPCC, LMHC

Kara Anderson is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor and a Licensed Mental Health Counselor with 29 years of experience. She practices online from Florida and focuses on practical, skills-based work to help people manage stress, anxiety, addictions, grief, and relationship concerns.

She began her counseling career in 1994 as a residential therapist in a psychiatric hospital. Over the years she has held roles as an outpatient therapist, clinical supervisor, program director at a substance abuse agency, and program manager for a nonprofit mental health organization. Those roles shaped her comfort with a wide range of issues and settings.

Kara uses a humanistic, client-centered stance that values genuineness, empathy, and a strong therapeutic relationship. She also blends structured techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy when helpful. Sessions often include practical tasks or homework to reinforce progress between meetings.

Her approach is warm, interactive, and direct when needed. She adapts pacing and methods to each person’s situation and goals, while encouraging steady movement toward healthier routines and coping skills. She also emphasizes balance across life areas and attention to physical symptoms tied to stress.

Kara holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Miami and a master’s degree in mental health counseling from Nova Southeastern University. She has done post-graduate coursework at the University of Dayton and continues professional reading and seminars to stay current.

How CBT and Client-Centered Care Work Online

Kara combines cognitive behavioral techniques with a client-centered approach to help people spot unhelpful thinking and build new coping skills. CBT focuses on identifying patterns of thought and behavior and practicing concrete strategies to reduce anxiety, manage cravings, or break cycles of negative thinking. Client-centered work emphasizes listening, empathy, and collaboration so people feel heard while they try new skills.

She also draws from dialectical behavior therapy when emotion regulation and distress tolerance skills are needed. DBT-based tools help with managing intense emotions, improving interpersonal effectiveness, and staying grounded during strong reactions. The therapist and client decide together which approaches fit best based on symptoms, goals, and personal preference.

Online therapy makes these methods easier to access through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging. Video is good for full sessions and face-to-face conversations, phone can be a lighter check-in with less bandwidth, chat works for brief exchanges or clarifying steps, and messaging is useful for ongoing homework, accountability, or short reflections between visits. These options offer flexibility for different schedules and life demands, and they allow the therapist to tailor pace and tools to each person.