Heather Burgess , LCMHC

Heather Burgess is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor (LCMHC) who began practicing after completing a master’s degree at Montreat College in 2018. She also holds recognition from the National Board of Certified Counselors and is a Licensed Clinical Addiction Specialist with the North Carolina Addiction Specialist Professional Practice Board, credentials that reflect specialized training in mental health and substance use treatment.

Her background includes work on an ACTT team and with a men’s residential substance use program in Asheville, North Carolina, service as a crisis hospital advocate with Our Voice, Inc., and delivering continuing education courses on sex trafficking. She provides in-home therapy for families where a child or youth is at risk of out-of-home placement, using a systems-based approach that coordinates school, home, legal, and social supports. In that work she draws from Internal Family Systems, cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, and art-based methods to tailor intervention to each family’s needs.

Heather also offers private counseling to individuals aged 13 and up, addressing concerns such as personality disorders, substance use, depression, anxiety, PTSD, grief and loss, anger management, and life transitions. Her practice is integrative and grounded in cognitive behavioral therapy with a trauma-informed stance. She emphasizes nonjudgmental, empowering support, collaborates on specific, action-oriented goals, and works creatively with clients to develop personalized plans that promote awareness and measurable progress.

Evidence-based approaches adapted for online care

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, helps people identify unhelpful thinking and behavior patterns and replace them with more effective strategies - it is commonly used for anxiety, depression, stress, and many everyday life challenges.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy, or DBT, focuses on building skills in emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness - it can be especially helpful for intense emotions, relationship difficulties, and coping under stress.

Motivational Interviewing is a collaborative, goal-oriented method that helps people explore and strengthen their motivation to change - it pairs well with work on substance use, habit change, and readiness for new behaviors.

Choosing the right approach is often part of therapy itself. Heather works collaboratively with clients and licensed professionals to determine which methods best fit each person’s goals, needs, and preferences, adapting techniques over time as progress and priorities evolve.

Online therapy offers practical flexibility: sessions can take place by video call, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging, allowing people to engage from different locations and schedules. These options make it easier to maintain continuity of care, attend more consistently, and integrate therapeutic work into everyday life while still benefiting from evidence-based interventions provided by trained therapists.