Profile / United States
Paula Donovan, LCSW
Virginia
LCSW - Stress and relationship concerns
See online therapy options- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
- Mindfulness practice
- Motivational interviewing
About Paula
Paula Donovan is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with 20 years of experience based in Virginia. She works with people dealing with stress, anxiety, grief, relationship problems, depression, and addiction. Paula also supports concerns such as intimacy issues, sleep and eating problems, career strain, and coping with life changes.
Paula uses practical, evidence-informed approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), mindfulness, motivational interviewing, and client-centered therapy. She treats sessions as collaborative; clients’ own knowledge about their lives guides each step. The focus is on noticing unhelpful thoughts and habits and trying different ways of responding.
Her background includes long experience living and working internationally before retraining in clinical social work. That life experience informs how she talks about culture, losses, and major transitions. Paula emphasizes real actions and small changes that can reduce persistent worry and low mood.
In sessions she helps people name patterns that drain energy and then build straightforward practices to shift them. Work can include problem-solving around caregiving stress, dealing with grief and end-of-life concerns, or addressing codependency and relationship issues. Paula may use mindfulness skills to calm intense emotion and CBT techniques to test unhelpful thoughts.
She encourages practical steps between sessions, like simple behavioral experiments and communication practices. Paula aims to make therapy readable and useful in day-to-day life. If someone wants a direct, structured approach to change, she offers concrete tools and steady guidance.
How Paula uses CBT, DBT, and client-centered work online
Paula draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people identify thinking patterns that keep stress and low mood active. CBT sessions often focus on short, practical exercises and behavioral experiments to test new responses to worries and unhelpful beliefs.She also uses Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills for managing intense emotion and building distress-tolerance and emotion-regulation strategies. DBT techniques can be useful when feelings feel overwhelming or when people struggle with repeated cycles of crisis and calm.
Client-centered therapy is part of her style too, which means she listens for each person’s own goals and life knowledge and shapes the work around those priorities. Together they decide which methods to try based on the client's needs, goals, and preferences.r>
Please confirm the current session options before booking, as formats are not specified here. The practical benefit of online sessions is that they can fit into busy days, allow shorter check-ins, and make it easier to maintain continuity when travel or caregiving makes in-person visits difficult. The therapist will help match approach and scheduling to everyday life and responsibilities.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
20+ years
Listed in
Virginia
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does she address most often?
She helps people with stress, anxiety, depression, grief, relationship strains, addictions, and related issues such as sleep, eating, and career problems.
How does she use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
She uses CBT to help people spot unhelpful thoughts and try different behaviors. Sessions often include small experiments and practical skills to test new ways of coping.
What is her professional background?
She has 20 years of clinical experience and an international work history before retraining as a clinical therapist.
What are her credentials and location?
She is a Virginia Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) practicing in Virginia.
Does she offer sessions in other languages?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can people outside the United States work with her?
She does not accept international clients at this time.
How are session fees handled?
Costs vary by location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
What are the first steps to begin work with her?
Click the See online therapy options button, complete a 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.