Laura Phen, LPC

Laura Phen is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with 25 years of experience supporting people through anxiety, depression, relationship and intimacy concerns, and trauma. She uses clear, practical methods to help clients name problems and try manageable changes. Her style is direct and warm, aimed at helping people feel understood and steady enough to take the next step.

She frames work around a strong therapeutic relationship. Sessions focus on what a person wants to change and how to get there. Clients can expect conversations that track thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, and simple skills to practice between sessions.

Laura draws from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to identify unhelpful thinking patterns and to try new behaviors. She also uses Client-Centered techniques to make space for each person’s experience and Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills when emotion regulation and interpersonal effectiveness are needed. Mindfulness methods are woven in to help with grounding and attention.

Her background includes decades of direct clinical work helping people manage grief, stress, sleep problems, parenting strain, compassion fatigue, and life transitions. She also supports those facing chronic illness, bereavement, post-traumatic stress, and issues around identity and purpose.

Therapy with Laura emphasizes practical steps. That can look like small experiments, skill-building drills, and focused conversations about relationships and values. The pace is collaborative and tailored to each person’s needs.

How therapeutic approaches translate to online care

Laura combines Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy to give practical tools people can use between sessions. CBT focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and testing new behaviors, which helps with anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and motivation. DBT offers concrete emotion regulation and interpersonal skills for overwhelming feelings, relationship conflicts, and intense stress.

Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. Laura will talk with each person about goals, daily challenges, and preferences, then suggest which methods to try first. Treatment plans are adjusted over time based on what works for the individual rather than a fixed protocol.

Online sessions offer flexibility for people with busy schedules or mobility limits. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues, phone sessions work well when bandwidth is limited, and live chat or text-based messaging can be useful for brief check-ins or practicing skills between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, caregiving, and travel routines while keeping the focus on practical change and steady progress.