Astra Barkley , LPC, LCMHC

Astra Barkley brings two decades of experience working with children, adults, and families across nonprofit programs, schools, state agencies, and private practice settings. Her career has included foster and adoptive case work, supporting children with special needs, and helping marginalized community members access essential services. In the private sector she has provided more than eight years of mental health counseling for concerns such as depression, attention deficit disorders, anxiety, adjustment disorders, and stress-related challenges.

Astra also contributes to higher education as an adjunct instructor at Troy University, teaching bachelor-level psychology courses, and she serves as a graduate teaching assistant at Auburn University while enrolled in a doctoral program in counselor education and supervision. As a foster and adoptive parent and an advocate for foster families and children, she combines personal experience with professional training. She is trained in the Trauma Informed Partnering of Safety and Permanence - Model Approach to Partnerships in Parenting and offers that training to interested foster and adoptive parents.

Holding credentials as an LPC and an LCMHC - Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor - Astra uses an integrative approach to tailor treatment plans to each person or family. Her practice emphasizes individualized care for a wide range of issues, including trauma and abuse, grief, relationship and family concerns, parenting, ADHD, addictions, and multicultural considerations.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Care

Astra Barkley draws from client-centered therapy, which emphasizes the individual's perspective and creates a supportive space where people can explore thoughts and feelings at their own pace. This approach is helpful for building self-esteem, processing life changes, and strengthening relationships. She also uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), a practical method that helps identify unhelpful thinking patterns and develop skills to manage anxiety, depression, and stress-related symptoms. Motivational Interviewing is another tool in her toolkit - a collaborative, goal-focused technique that supports motivation and change for issues like addictions, ADHD-related challenges, and behavior shifts.

Finding the right therapeutic approach is part of the process, and Astra works collaboratively with each person to determine which combination of methods best matches their needs, goals, and preferences. She tailors her approach over time as progress and priorities evolve.

Online therapy offers practical flexibility for clients who need adaptable scheduling and varied communication styles. Sessions can take place by video call or phone for face-to-face interaction, or through live chat and text-based messaging for shorter check-ins and ongoing support. These options make it easier to maintain continuity of care around work, family, and other commitments while working with licensed professionals and therapists to address meaningful concerns.