Samantha Whelan , LPC

Samantha Whelan is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) who brings a blend of clinical experience and lived perspective to her work. She holds state licenses in Oklahoma, Alabama, and New Hampshire and built the foundation of her practice over many years of direct clinical work. After a period away from full-time practice to raise her two children, she remained engaged in professional development through continuing education, and returned with renewed insight into the everyday challenges families face.

Her time balancing family life and professional growth deepened her understanding of personal and relational struggles beyond what textbooks provide. She considers it an honor to support people facing individual, family, or relationship difficulties by offering practical feedback, skill-building, and tools honed through group and individual psychotherapy. Much of her early career involved work with people affected by addiction and complex mental health concerns, which required attention to social, emotional, spiritual, physical, legal, familial, and financial impacts of unhealthy patterns.

Samantha developed a therapeutic style grounded in cognitive behavioral techniques, behavioral theory, motivational interviewing, and client-centered therapy, approaches that promote collaboration and measurable change. She has personal experience with counseling from the client perspective, which informs her emphasis on validation and being truly heard. Viewing change as a continuum, she helps clients identify where they are and which behavior changes support their growth. Her approach centers the client’s goals, and she seeks to align each treatment plan with what the client wants to achieve.

Therapeutic approaches and online care

Samantha commonly integrates client-centered therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and motivational interviewing into her online practice. Client-centered therapy focuses on creating a respectful, empathetic relationship that encourages self-exploration and personal growth; it is helpful for people working through relationship, self-esteem, and life transition issues. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) involves identifying and shifting unhelpful thoughts and behaviors, and it is often used for anxiety, depression, stress management, and coping with mood symptoms. Motivational interviewing is a collaborative, goal-oriented style that helps people resolve ambivalence and strengthen motivation for change, which is particularly useful in addiction recovery and other behavior-change efforts.

Samantha treats the choice of approach as a collaborative part of care. She works with clients to evaluate needs, goals, and personal preferences, and then tailors techniques from these models to fit the client’s situation rather than applying a one-size-fits-all method. This process helps determine which strategies will be most practical and acceptable for the individual.

Online therapy options include live video sessions, phone appointments, live chat, and text-based messaging, offering flexibility for different schedules and comfort levels. These formats make it easier for clients to attend sessions from home, coordinate with busy family or work commitments, and maintain continuity of care when in-person visits are challenging. Samantha aims to make therapy accessible and adaptable while preserving a collaborative therapeutic relationship.