Vanessa Smith, LPC, LCSW

Vanessa Smith is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Clinical Social Worker practicing in Louisiana. She draws on six years of direct clinical experience to help people manage stress, anxiety, and addictions. Her approach is warm and interactive, and she centers the person in their own care.

Vanessa prefers short, plain conversations that get to the problem. She listens first, then helps people notice patterns in thoughts and behavior. Sessions focus on clear goals such as reducing anxiety, managing cravings, rebuilding after loss, or finding a sense of purpose.

She uses a mix of approaches so each plan fits the person. That can include client-centered work to follow the client’s priorities, cognitive behavioral ideas to change unhelpful thinking, and motivational interviewing to support behavior change. Vanessa also draws on solution-focused strategies when people want practical steps and quick wins.

Vanessa has worked with people facing depression, grief, relationship strain, parenting stress, trauma and compassion fatigue. She also supports those dealing with drug and alcohol addiction and life transitions like job loss or major changes. She aims to help people move toward more stable routines and clearer goals.

In sessions she offers steady listening, practical tools, and collaborative planning. Her goal is to help clients build skills they can use outside of therapy and to support small, sustainable changes over time.

How these approaches translate to online care

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on following the person's lead and creating a supportive space. Online sessions let the therapist listen closely and shape the work around what matters most to the client, whether that is addiction recovery, grief, or life changes.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors connect. In online sessions this often means identifying unhelpful thinking patterns and practicing simple skills between meetings to reduce anxiety or depressive symptoms.

Motivational Interviewing is a brief, conversational method to strengthen a person’s own reasons for change. It works well when someone is thinking about cutting back on substance use or making other big life changes.

Choosing the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will talk with the client about goals, preferences, and what has helped before, then adapt methods together in a collaborative plan.

Session formats are not specified here, so confirm current options before booking. Online therapy can make it easier to fit appointments into a busy life, save travel time, and allow shorter check-ins when needed. Licensed professionals can use video or phone differently depending on what helps a person stay engaged and practice new skills between sessions.