Risa Mendelson , LPC

Risa Mendelson brings a rehabilitation-focused perspective to counseling, combining graduate training with hands-on experience supporting people who face physical and emotional challenges. She holds an MA in Rehabilitation Counseling and Community Inclusion, a graduate degree focused on assessing individual needs and designing practical interventions to support participation in daily life. She also earned a BS in psychology with an emphasis in Human Development and works as a licensed Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant, providing experience-based insight into the overlap between physical function and emotional well-being.

Her clinical approach blends several evidence-informed methods - including cognitive techniques, dialectical behavior therapy, cognitive-behavioral strategies, and mindfulness practices - so care can be tailored to each person. Over six years of practice, she has worked with clients experiencing anxiety, low self-esteem, relationship strain, time-management difficulties, and traumatic brain injury, among other concerns. This range has reinforced a holistic view that attends to mental, physical, and emotional dimensions of recovery and growth.

Risa emphasizes collaboration, helping clients set goals and choose strategies that fit their values and everyday realities. She works with individuals navigating stress, mood concerns, addiction-related issues, grief, caregiving burdens, chronic pain or illness, isolation, and life changes, offering practical tools and steady support throughout the therapeutic process.

Approaches That Translate Well to Online Therapy

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on meeting each person where they are, prioritizing empathy, respect, and the client’s own goals. Within this approach the therapist provides a supportive space that helps clients develop self-understanding and make choices that align with their values.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps people identify unhelpful thought patterns and build practical skills to change behaviors. It is often used for anxiety, depression, stress, and problems with motivation or time management and lends itself to structured work during remote sessions.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) teaches concrete skills for emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. These skills are helpful for managing intense emotions, improving relationships, and navigating crisis moments, and they can be practiced and reinforced in virtual appointments.

Choosing the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. Risa Mendelson works collaboratively with each client to determine which methods fit their needs, goals, and preferences, adjusting strategies over time as progress and challenges emerge.

Online therapy offers practical flexibility - sessions can occur by video call, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging - which makes it easier to fit care into busy schedules, manage mobility or health limitations, and maintain continuity of support. Licensed professionals can use these remote formats to provide consistent, goal-oriented treatment and skills practice that align with a client’s daily life.