Jonnet Cruz , LMFT

Jonnet Cruz (pronounced Jonay) is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) practicing in Hawaii and Florida with 20 years of professional experience. She works with children and teens, families, couples, adults, active duty service members, and veterans to address a wide range of concerns including stress, anxiety, family conflict, trauma and abuse, motivation, self-esteem, and confidence. Her clinical work frequently focuses on relationship dynamics, parenting challenges, grief, addiction, mood disorders, and the complex effects of attachment and abandonment.

Jonnet approaches therapy from the belief that each person is the expert of their own story and brings strengths that support change. She draws on a mix of evidence-informed methods to tailor care to individual needs, incorporating EMDR, Internal Family Systems (IFS), attachment-based strategies, cognitive behavioral techniques, dialectical behavior tools, and narrative therapy. This blend allows her to address symptoms and the relational patterns that contribute to them, whether working with individuals, couples, or whole families.

As an LMFT - a license that indicates specialized training in relationship and family systems - Jonnet emphasizes collaboration, practical skills, and compassionate inquiry to help clients move toward greater functioning and connection. She offers care that is attuned to cultural context and the unique demands of life in Hawaii and similar settings.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Care

Jonnet often integrates Attachment-Based Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) into her online work. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early and current relationship patterns shape emotions and behavior, helping clients improve closeness, trust, and emotional regulation in relationships. CBT focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and behaviors and building practical skills to reduce symptoms like anxiety, depression, and stress.

She also uses Client-Centered principles, creating a respectful, nonjudgmental space where clients guide the pace and focus of therapy. Together with clients, Jonnet explores which combination of approaches best fits each person or family, making treatment decisions collaboratively based on goals, preferences, and life circumstances.

Online sessions through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging offer flexibility for busy schedules, geographic limitations, and varying comfort levels with communication. These options allow licensed professionals like Jonnet to deliver consistent therapeutic support, teach skills, and work on relationship issues without requiring in-person visits, making it easier to keep therapy integrated with everyday life.