About Carleigh
Carleigh O'Brien is a licensed clinical social worker who has been providing therapy for nine years. She trained at Walla Walla University in Missoula, Montana, and now practices in Montana as an LCSW. She focuses on helping people who are overwhelmed by anxiety, depression, trauma, and life transitions.
Her approach is practical and straightforward. She uses tools from cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness to help people notice patterns and try different responses.
Background and approach
She also draws on attachment-based ideas to look at how early and current relationships shape reactions and expectations. Sessions tend to be collaborative and paced to the person sitting in the room. Clients can expect short-term strategies for managing urgent symptoms, alongside longer work on relationship patterns and self-direction.
She also supports people navigating parenting struggles, grief, and career changes. Carleigh has experience addressing trauma, including sexual assault and post-traumatic stress, and she works with people coping with bipolar disorder and ADHD symptoms. She helps people rebuild a sense of agency after hard experiences and improve communication in close relationships.
Her style balances practical skill-building with mindful awareness. She uses motivational interviewing to support readiness for change and client-centered listening to follow each person’s priorities. Sessions are offered in English and available through multiple online formats.
Therapeutic approaches and online options
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, focuses on identifying personal values and taking committed steps toward them. It helps people living with anxiety, depression, or life transitions who want clear, values-based goals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts and behaviors keep problems going and teaches practical skills to change unhelpful patterns. It is useful for anxiety, mood problems, and managing symptoms day to day.Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will check in about goals and preferences and combine ACT, CBT, or attachment-based ideas as needed. This is a collaborative process where strategies are adjusted based on what helps most.
Online therapy offers flexibility in how sessions happen. Video calls let people use eye contact and body language, while phone sessions can fit into a work break or require less bandwidth. Live chat and text-based messaging are helpful for quick check-ins, brief reflections, or when typing feels easier than talking. These options make it simpler to keep momentum between appointments and to find a format that fits a busy schedule.
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does Carleigh commonly help with?
What is her therapeutic style like?
How much clinical experience does she have?
What credentials and where does she practice?
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What session formats are available?
How are sessions paid for and how do I start?
Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
Also works with
- ADHD
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Communication problems
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- LGBT
- Parenting issues
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Self esteem
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Trauma and abuse
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 9 years
- Licensed
- Montana
- Languages
- English