Elaine Messarra , LPC

Elaine Messarra is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) based in Texas with 26 years of clinical experience. She offers individual therapy for adults and draws on a client-centered style that emphasizes listening and pacing sessions to each person’s needs.

Elaine previously worked as a teacher and school counselor for 20 years and has also provided psychotherapy in private practice and in nursing home and assisted living settings. That background shapes her practical, down-to-earth way of talking through problems and supporting people during life transitions.

She works with a wide range of concerns including stress, anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse, grief, addictions, and issues around intimacy and relationships. Additional focuses include caregiver stress, chronic illness and pain, body image, and challenges tied to family of origin and blended family dynamics.

Elaine uses approaches such as Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), Mindfulness Therapy, and Narrative Therapy. She explains ideas plainly and helps people try techniques in real life, like noticing unhelpful thoughts, practicing new patterns in relationships, and using mindful breathing to manage distress.

Faith can be part of sessions when the client wants it; Elaine offers faith-based support and prayer as an option. She aims to create a nonjudgmental space where people feel heard and leave sessions feeling lighter and more hopeful.

Approaches that translate well to online therapy

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on deeply listening and responding to what matters most to the person in front of the therapist. It helps people feel heard and guided at their own pace, which works well over video or phone. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, teaches practical steps to notice and change unhelpful thinking and behavior patterns; it pairs easily with worksheets and short exercises that can be shared during video or text sessions. Emotionally-Focused Therapy, or EFT, helps people identify and name strong emotions and related patterns in relationships; the therapist uses reflective conversation to help clients try new ways of connecting and responding.

Finding the best approach is a team effort. Elaine will work with each person to choose or blend methods based on their goals, what feels comfortable, and what actually helps in daily life. That decision can shift over time as needs change and progress is made.

Online therapy offers practical benefits like flexible scheduling and a range of ways to connect. Video calls allow face-to-face interaction for deeper conversation, phone sessions can fit around work breaks or low bandwidth, and live chat or text-based messaging provides shorter check-ins or ongoing support between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life while still focusing on clear tools and steady progress.