About Donna
Donna Smith helps people who are feeling overwhelmed by stress, anxiety, depression, or the aftereffects of trauma. She is a licensed clinical social worker - LCSW - with decades of experience. Donna writes in a calm, straightforward way and focuses on practical steps that can make daily life easier.
Over 38 years Donna has worked mostly in medical and psychiatric settings. That history means she is used to seeing people who face hard medical news, ongoing health problems, or complex emotional reactions.
Background and approach
Her background includes supporting people dealing with postpartum depression, relationship strain, and stress from prejudice and discrimination. In sessions she draws on common-sense tools from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to help people notice unhelpful thinking and try small behavior changes.
She also uses client-centered and mindfulness approaches to create space for people to feel heard and calmer in the moment. Donna also incorporates elements of the Gottman Method when relationship issues come up, focusing on clearer communication and rebuilding connection step by step.
Her work with trauma and abuse looks at how past painful experiences affect current mood and relationships, and then finds coping strategies that fit the person’s life. People who choose Donna can expect a steady, experienced clinician who prioritizes clear goals and simple, usable skills.
She aims to help people build routines and ways of thinking that ease distress and improve day-to-day functioning.
Practical approaches for online therapy
Donna uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which looks at how thoughts affect feelings and behaviors and helps people try small, testable changes. That approach can help with anxiety, depression, and stress by teaching skills for changing unhelpful thinking and routines.She also uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, which focuses on noticing difficult thoughts and feelings without getting stuck in them, and then taking action toward what matters. ACT can be useful for people dealing with persistent worry, trauma reminders, or life transitions. Donna blends these with client-centered listening to make space for each person’s experience and priorities.
Deciding which approach fits best is a collaborative process. Donna will talk with each person about their goals and preferences, and together they will try methods that match those needs. She adjusts the focus over time based on what helps most.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video lets people work face to face from different places, phone can be useful when bandwidth is low, live chat supports shorter check-ins, and messaging can make it easier to keep momentum between sessions. These options aim to increase flexibility so therapy can fit into busy lives.
Frequently asked questions
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 38 years
- Licensed
- Louisiana
- Languages
- English