Carleen Gates

Carleen Gates is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) who focuses on helping women navigate stress, anxiety, grief, depression, and the strain that comes from life responsibilities. She speaks plainly and invites people to bring what feels hardest to talk about. Her approach is practical and direct, with attention to respect and dignity for each person who comes in.

She describes her style as caring, encouraging, and client-centered. Sessions often combine straightforward conversation with hands-on strategies to manage mood, overwhelm, and difficult family situations. Carleen values being candid while also offering compassion and thoughtful listening.

Over ten years in mental health work have given her experience across different settings. She has provided individual therapy, group work, case management, school-based services, telehealth, and in-home support. That variety informs the way she adapts sessions to everyday life and real-world problems.

Carleen helps people address a range of concerns such as compassion fatigue, bipolar disorder, ADHD, family problems, forgiveness, guilt and shame, money and financial stress, life purpose, and self-love. She encourages clients to set manageable goals and practice new skills between meetings.

Her work is grounded in a mix of approaches including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Client-Centered Therapy, and psychodynamic ideas. She aims to guide people toward a more self-empowered, rewarding life while honoring each person’s pace and values.

How therapeutic approaches translate to online care

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, focuses on clarifying personal values and taking small, committed actions that match those values. It helps people reduce the hold of painful thoughts while building a life that matters to them. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at the link between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and teaches practical skills to shift unhelpful patterns. It often helps with anxiety, depression, and stress by using concrete tools and homework.

Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will listen to your concerns, goals, and preferences and then discuss which methods might fit best. That decision is collaborative and can change as your needs evolve.

Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy life, cut down travel time, and allow quicker check-ins when needed. The biography notes prior telehealth experience, but current session formats should be confirmed before booking. Ask about how sessions are scheduled and what to expect during an online meeting so you can plan sessions around work, caregiving, or other daily responsibilities.