Wendy Goffena , LCSW

Wendy Goffena is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with nine years of experience providing therapy services in clinical settings and a total of 24 years working in mental health services. She is currently employed at a Community Mental Health Center in Central Montana, where she serves a diverse adult population ranging from 18 to 90 years of age.

Her caseload includes military veterans, people seeking extra support for common mental health concerns, individuals who are severely mentally ill or disabled, and court-mandated clients. She works with individuals and families affected by depression, anxiety, PTSD, various forms of abuse and trauma, complex grief and loss, anger management, and interpersonal relationship challenges that touch home, family, and work life.

Her professional background spans multiple settings and client groups, including five years in a rural Montana county mental health center, two years in medical social work providing therapeutic support to patients with stage 4 and 5 chronic kidney failure, 16 years in an inpatient residential treatment center for emotionally disturbed youth ages 8 to 18, three years in a Department of Justice correctional facility serving adolescent girls, one year in child protective services, and four years providing services and case management in partial and intensive outpatient day treatment programs at an alternative school.

A Montana native with roots in farming and ranching, she earned an undergraduate degree in elementary education from Montana State University in Billings and taught in small communities for seven years. She returned to graduate school in 2013 and graduated with honors in 2015 with a Master of Social Work from Walla Walla University Billings satellite campus. She completed licensure requirements and has held a professional license as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker for nine years.

Her approach to therapy is client-centered, grounded in the belief that clients are experts on their own lives and active partners in change. She uses a strengths-based perspective and Motivational Interviewing to help clients identify strengths and set meaningful goals. She draws on evidence-informed modalities such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to support mood regulation, address trauma, and shift unhelpful patterns of thinking and behavior. Her aim is to help clients increase coping capacity and move toward a life with more joy and freedom from distressing symptoms.

Outside of clinical work, she enjoys the Montana outdoors through hiking, fishing, camping, exploring historical sites, rock-hounding, and gardening, and she is an avid artist.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Care

Wendy Goffena integrates several evidence-informed approaches to tailor care to each person's needs. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps clients identify and change unhelpful patterns of thinking and behavior so they can manage symptoms like anxiety, depression, and stress more effectively. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) emphasizes acceptance, mindfulness, and values-based action to increase psychological flexibility and help people move toward what matters most in their lives. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) offers tools for processing past traumatic experiences that continue to affect relationships and day-to-day functioning.

Choosing the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. She works collaboratively with clients - assessing goals, preferences, and responses to different techniques - to determine which modalities or combinations will be most helpful. This partnership helps shape a treatment plan that fits each person's situation.

Online therapy options including video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging make it easier to access care without major disruptions to daily life. These formats provide flexibility for scheduling, allow continuity of care across distances within the United States, and let clients engage in therapy from settings that work for them while working with licensed professionals and therapists.