About Sonia
Dr. Sonia Smith is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 25 years of experience in New York. She focuses on practical, people-centered care for stress, anxiety, relationships, grief, depression, and related concerns.
Sonia speaks plainly and helps people find actions they can try between sessions. Her work centers on approaches that focus on the person and on solving problems. She uses Client-Centered Therapy to build trust and understand each person's priorities.
Background and approach
She also draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help change unhelpful thoughts and behaviors, and on Motivational Interviewing to support commitment to change. Over two and a half decades she has supported people facing trauma and abuse, addictions, parenting strain, intimacy problems, and loss.
She has worked with issues connected to adoption and foster care, attachment, blended family stress, and family of origin conflict. She also helps people coping with life changes, immigration challenges, hospice and end-of-life concerns, and isolation or loneliness. Sessions focus on clear goals and small steps that add up.
Sonia often blends brief solution-focused techniques with longer conversations to address patterns. She also offers coaching-style work for people looking for practical life or relationship guidance. Her approach aims to be direct, compassionate, and realistic.
Sonia helps people weigh options, build skills, and make steady progress toward better day-to-day functioning.
Approaches that translate well to online therapy
The practice blends Client-Centered Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in ways that work well online. Client-Centered Therapy means the therapist listens closely, reflects what matters to the person, and helps set priorities for change. This approach is helpful for people who need space to talk through emotions and clarify goals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and changing behaviors through targeted exercises and homework. CBT is useful for anxiety, depression, and stress when concrete strategies are needed.Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will work with the person to match methods to goals, preferences, and day-to-day demands. Together they’ll try different techniques and adjust the plan based on what helps most.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging, which provide flexibility for different schedules and needs. Video calls allow more face-to-face interaction for deeper conversations. Phone sessions can fit into a shorter break or require less internet bandwidth. Chat and messaging are useful for quick check-ins, brief coaching, or ongoing support between longer sessions. These options make it easier to keep therapy consistent while balancing work, family, and other commitments.
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of problems does Sonia address?
What style of therapy can I expect in sessions?
How much clinical experience does she bring?
Where is Sonia licensed and based?
Can I work with her in a language other than English?
What session formats are available for online work?
How are sessions priced?
How do I begin if I want to work together?
Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Trauma and abuse
Also works with
- Abandonment
- Addictions
- Adoption and foster care
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Blended family issues
- Coaching
- Communication problems
- Coping with life changes
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Immigration issues
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- LGBT
- Life purpose
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Self esteem
- Women's issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 25 years
- Licensed
- New York
- Languages
- English