Karen Garraputa

Karen Garraputa, LCMHC, helps people facing big life shifts and everyday stress. She works with people who are coping with anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse, and LGBT concerns. Her approach is down-to-earth and practical, aimed at making small changes that add up over time.

She has 25 years of experience and is licensed in North Carolina as an LCMHC. Karen listens and helps people make sense of where they are now. She uses everyday language and simple metaphors to keep conversations clear and approachable.

In sessions she draws on cognitive behavioral ideas to link thoughts, feelings, and actions. She combines that with mindfulness skills to help people notice patterns and try different responses in real life. The focus is on steps people can use between meetings, not just ideas discussed in the room.

Karen also supports work around forgiveness, guilt and shame, life purpose, mood concerns, self-love, and women’s issues. Her style is collaborative - she guides and suggests, and the person decides what feels useful. She emphasizes small, manageable changes rather than big, immediate fixes.

If someone is feeling overwhelmed by choices or unsure of the next step, Karen offers steady, practical support. She frames therapy as a shared process and helps people build tools for daily life.

How CBT and DBT Methods Translate to Online Sessions

CBT focuses on noticing and changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors. Online sessions can include practical exercises, thought records, and action plans to try between meetings. This approach is useful for anxiety, depression, and stress when people want clear steps to change daily reactions.

DBT brings skills for managing strong emotions, improving distress tolerance, and using mindfulness to stay present. In remote sessions these skills are taught in short practice segments and repeated until they feel usable in real situations. DBT-style work can help when emotions feel overwhelming or when people struggle with intense mood swings.

Finding the right mix of approaches is part of therapy. The therapist will work together with each person to decide whether CBT, DBT, or a combination fits their goals and preferences. That choice can shift over time as needs change, and the clinician will check in regularly to adjust methods.

Confirm the available session formats before booking, as the biography does not specify which online options are offered. Online therapy can make it easier to fit meetings into a busy schedule, reduce travel time, and allow for focused check-ins during a lunch break or between errands. It also lets people use guided exercises and worksheets during the session, so skills can be practiced right away.