- Codependency focus
- Substance concerns
- Practical strategies
About Catherine
Catherine McLaughlin is a licensed clinical social worker with 23 years of experience. She listens without judgment and helps people facing stress, anxiety, depression, grief, addiction, and issues around self-esteem and codependency. She brings a direct but warm style and uses humor when it fits the moment.
She frames sessions around where each person is starting from. That can mean taking time to unpack what's most urgent or focusing on small, practical steps to reduce overwhelm. Catherine draws on client-centered work to follow clients' goals and values while also using cognitive behavioral ideas to spot unhelpful thinking patterns.
Her background includes long-term private practice and work with the New York State Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse, where she supported people involved in cases tied to driving while intoxicated. That mix of settings shaped a flexible approach to problems like substance use, relapse risk, and motivation to change.
Mindfulness techniques are used to help people notice strong feelings without getting swept up by them. Psychodynamic ideas inform exploration of how past relationships and patterns show up now. Motivational interviewing is added when ambivalence or readiness to change becomes a focus.
Catherine aims to make therapy a practical partnership. She checks in about progress and adjusts plans when needed. People who want straightforward guidance with steady support may find her approach helpful.
How therapeutic approaches shape online work
Client-Centered Therapy is about following the person's lead and building goals that matter to them. It helps when someone needs a therapist who listens first and adjusts the pace and focus to the client's priorities.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, focuses on identifying and testing unhelpful thoughts and changing behaviors that keep problems going. This approach is often useful for anxiety, low mood, panic, and habits tied to substance use.
Mindfulness Therapy teaches simple ways to notice strong feelings and bodily sensations without reacting immediately. It can help reduce rumination and make it easier to choose a different response in the moment.
Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the work. Catherine will collaborate with each person to decide which methods to try first, adjust techniques over time, and set goals that feel realistic. Treatment plans are revisited as needs and readiness change.
For practical matters, confirm current session options before booking since formats are not listed here. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy life, allow shorter check-ins when that helps, and remove travel time. Those practical benefits often help people keep therapy consistent while they work toward their goals.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
23+ years
Credentials
New York
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does this therapist help with?
Areas include stress, anxiety, depression, grief, addictions, self-esteem, codependency, relationship and intimacy-related issues, trauma, anger, bipolar and mood disorders, and related challenges.
How would you describe the therapeutic style?
Sessions are client-centered and practical. Catherine uses a direct but warm style and may add humor when appropriate.
What kind of experience does she bring?
She has 23 years of clinical experience, including long-term private practice and work with the New York State Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse.
What are the therapist's credentials and location?
She is an LCSW licensed in New York and is listed as practicing from New York in this profile.
Which languages are sessions offered in?
Sessions are offered in English.
Are international clients supported?
International clients are not currently accepted.
How does billing or cost work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin therapy with this clinician?
Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule according to therapist availability.
Profile details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. Credential and registration rules differ between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.