Profile / United States
Ellen Thrasher, LCSW
Hawaii
LCSW - Anxiety and Trauma-focused work
See online therapy options- CBT methods
- DBT skills
- Trauma care
About Ellen
Ellen Thrasher is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Hawaii with 30 years of professional experience. She helps people manage stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, grief, anger, and depression. Ellen works in a straightforward way and encourages practical steps people can try between sessions.
Ellen uses structured methods to notice unhelpful thoughts and habits. She helps clients identify patterns that keep problems going and then test different ways of responding. Sessions often include focused skills practice and short experiments to see what changes feel useful.
Her approach draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) along with Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Trauma-Focused Therapy when needed. Those methods are used to address things like panic attacks, post-traumatic stress, social anxiety, and persistent worry. She also supports people dealing with relationship wounds such as abandonment and attachment issues.
Ellen works with people facing chronic pain, illness, or disability and with those strained by workplace or money problems. She offers concrete tools for managing difficult emotions, improving communication, and rebuilding self-regard after painful experiences.
Practical steps are central to her work: set a small goal, try a change, and review what happened. This keeps therapy focused and grounded in everyday life. To start, clients follow the listed intake steps to schedule a first session and discuss goals with Ellen.
How CBT, DBT, and Trauma-Focused Therapy work online
CBT helps people break cycles of worry or negative thinking by identifying thoughts, testing them, and trying small behavior changes. It is often used for anxiety, panic, social fears, and low mood. DBT provides concrete skills for managing intense emotions and reducing reactive behaviors, such as distress tolerance and grounding techniques. Trauma-Focused Therapy concentrates on processing traumatic events in manageable steps and reducing trauma-related symptoms.Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will discuss goals, what has helped before, and any practical limits to working together. From that conversation a plan is made that mixes skills practice, short experiments, and focused review so each session has clear, practical next steps.
Session formats are not specified in the biography, so confirm current online options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit appointments into a day, require less travel, and allow for shorter check-ins when needed. They also let people use skills learned in therapy directly in their usual surroundings, then discuss what worked at the next meeting.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
30+ years
Listed in
Hawaii
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does she commonly address?
She works with stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, grief, anger, and depression, plus related issues such as panic, social anxiety, and workplace problems.
How does she use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
She uses CBT to help people notice unhelpful thoughts and habits, test new responses, and build practical skills that change daily patterns.
What other therapeutic styles does she use?
She draws on Dialectical Behavior Therapy for emotion regulation and Trauma-Focused Therapy for trauma-related symptoms when those approaches fit a client's needs.
What is her background and experience?
She has 30 years of professional experience as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Hawaii, working across a range of emotional and trauma-related concerns.
Where is she licensed and what credentials does she hold?
She is an LCSW licensed in Hawaii.
Which languages are supported and can international clients join?
Sessions are offered in English and she is not accepting international clients at this time.
How are session fees handled?
Costs vary with location and sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
What are the steps to begin working with her?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. A license can be checked with the state board.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If you are not safe, use the crisis numbers.