About Donna
Donna Smith is a licensed mental health counselor with 35 years of experience based in New York. She helps people facing stress, anxiety, depression, grief, relationship and intimacy concerns, addiction struggles, trauma and abuse, parenting strain, and identity issues related to LGBT and gender dysphoria. Donna aims to make therapy straightforward and collaborative for people who want practical change.
She uses a variety of methods in session, leaning on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, cognitive behavioral techniques, dialectical behavior ideas, emotionally-focused work, and a client-centered stance.
Background and approach
Sessions focus on small, manageable steps - learning ways to handle intense emotions, improving communication, and finding values that guide decisions. Donna often blends talk with simple exercises people can use between meetings. Donna trained at the University of Rochester and holds a New York Licensed Mental Health Counselor credential - LMHC.
Over three decades she has worked in different mental health settings and now prefers one-on-one work where she can support a person’s goals directly. Her background brings a steady, experienced presence to sessions. She describes her role as a guide who partners with clients to explore their story and imagine change.
Creative writing is a personal interest she sometimes weaves into therapy when it fits a person’s goals. The tone in sessions is open, respectful, and focused on what the client wants to achieve. People who choose to work with Donna can expect practical tools, gentle challenge, and attention to values and meaning as they navigate life changes and healing.
Therapeutic approaches and online options that meet you where you are
Donna often uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to help people name their values and take small steps toward them, even when difficult thoughts or feelings are present. This approach can help with anxiety, depression, grief, and coping with life changes.She also draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which focuses on identifying unhelpful thought patterns and trying new behaviors to reduce distress. CBT is useful for stress, mood problems, and many anxiety-related concerns.
Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist works together with each person to decide which methods fit their goals and preferences, and adjusts the plan as progress is made. Clients are encouraged to give feedback so sessions stay focused and practical.
Online therapy options include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video sessions let people work face-to-face from a distance, phone sessions can be easier when bandwidth is limited, live chat offers a quicker check-in, and messaging supports ongoing reflection between meetings. These formats give flexibility to fit therapy into busy schedules, reduce travel time, and allow different ways of communicating depending on what feels most comfortable.
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does Donna focus on?
What is her therapeutic style like?
How much experience does she have?
What credential and location are listed?
Which languages are used in sessions?
What formats are available for sessions?
How does cost and billing work?
How do I begin working with her?
Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Stress, Anxiety
- LGBT
- Relationship issues
Also works with
- Abandonment
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Bipolar disorder
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Dependent personality
- Depression
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Divorce and separation
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Mood disorders
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Trauma and abuse
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 35 years
- Licensed
- New York
- Languages
- English