About
- Attachment-based work
- Cognitive behavioral tools
- Narrative approaches
About Valerie
Valerie Novak is a California LMFT with 10 years of clinical experience. She works with adults who are managing stress, anxiety, relationship strain, family and parenting concerns, and depression. Valerie also supports people facing grief, trauma, addiction challenges, and life transitions.
She centers sessions on the client's story and strengths. Valerie uses straightforward conversation to help people name what feels hard. She listens for patterns in relationships and day-to-day reactions that keep problems going. Then she and the client try practical steps to reduce overwhelm and improve communication.
Valerie draws on attachment-focused ideas to look at how early relationships shape present worries. She also uses client-centered methods to follow the client's priorities, and cognitive behavioral tools to change stressful thoughts and habits. For people with trauma, she incorporates trauma-informed approaches alongside narrative work to help make sense of painful memories.
Sessions often include skill practice between visits. Valerie helps people set small, measurable goals and notices progress over time. She pays attention to caregiver stress, adoption and foster care issues, aging and end-of-life concerns, and the challenges of caregiving roles.
Conversations are practical and paced to fit the client. Valerie supports adults dealing with isolation, social anxiety, career shifts, guilt and shame, and questions about life purpose. She encourages realistic steps that can fit into everyday life.
How sessions work
Approaches you can use in online sessions
Valerie uses attachment-based ideas to map how early relationships affect current patterns. This approach looks at how trust, closeness, and caregiving experiences shape reactivity in relationships and helps people change long-standing interaction habits.She also draws on cognitive behavioral therapy, which focuses on the links between thoughts, feelings, and actions. CBT gives concrete tools for reducing anxiety, changing unhelpful thinking, and practicing new behaviors between sessions.
Finding the right approach is part of the work. Valerie will talk with the client about goals and preferences and then propose methods to try. That plan can change as progress and needs become clearer, and decisions are made together during sessions.
The practical benefits of online work include easier scheduling and fitting sessions into a busy day. If you need to fit a check-in during a lunch break, or prefer not to travel, online options can help. The biography does not list specific session formats, so confirm current session options before booking. Many people find online sessions make it easier to keep regular appointments and practice skills between meetings.
Areas of focus
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
10+ years
Listed in
California
Languages
English
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of problems does she help with?
She works with stress, anxiety, relationship strain, family and parenting concerns, depression, grief, trauma and addictions among other issues.
How would she describe her therapeutic style?
She combines attachment-focused listening, client-centered conversation, and CBT-style practical work to identify patterns and try concrete changes.
How much clinical experience does she have?
She has 10 years of professional experience as a clinician working with adults on relationship and mental health concerns.
What are her credentials and where does she practice?
She is a California LMFT and practices in California.
Does she offer sessions in other languages or to international clients?
Sessions are offered in English. International clients are not currently accepted.
What session formats are available?
The original biography does not specify session formats. Confirm current session options before booking.
How is cost handled for sessions?
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Use the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. A license can be checked with the state board.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If anyone is in danger, use the crisis numbers.