Jennifer Smith , LCSW

Jennifer Smith is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 23 years of experience who helps people facing stress, anxiety, grief, depression, and life changes. She works with adults on mood concerns, parenting stress, LGBT issues, and trauma and abuse. Her style is warm and straightforward and she aims to help people feel more confident in their strengths.

She began with a BA in Psychology from Ithaca College and spent early years in a psychiatric hospital doing testing, co-leading groups, and intake work. Jennifer then earned a Master of Social Work from Adelphi University and worked in New York’s Early Intervention Program before moving into community mental health in New York and New Jersey.

Over the years she has supported people with a wide range of concerns including bipolar disorder, eating and food-related issues, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and self-injury. She also helps those coping with attachment and abandonment issues, caregiver stress, fertility worries, and isolation or loneliness. Her experience includes work with adolescents in a therapeutic school setting, which shaped her practical approach.

Jennifer uses several approaches depending on what a person needs. She draws from cognitive behavioral methods, acceptance and commitment ideas, attachment-focused work, and client-centered listening. She believes no single method fits everyone and mixes techniques to match each person’s goals.

In sessions she aims to be nonjudgmental, flexible, and pragmatic. People can expect a calm listener who offers concrete tools for coping, ways to manage intense emotions, and steps to rebuild daily routines and relationships.

How therapeutic approaches translate to online care

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on clarifying values and taking small, meaningful actions even when feelings are difficult. It can help with anxiety, depression, and coping with life changes by teaching practical ways to notice thoughts and move toward what matters. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) looks at how thoughts and behaviors interact and uses step-by-step exercises to change unhelpful patterns; it is useful for anxiety, mood issues, and many everyday problems. Attachment-Based Therapy pays attention to how early relationships affect current connections and trust, and it can help people who struggle with abandonment, attachment issues, and family conflict.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with each person to choose methods that match their needs, goals, and preferences. Sessions often blend techniques so the plan can change as progress is made and goals evolve.

Online therapy offers practical flexibility. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues, phone sessions work well when internet bandwidth is limited, live chat can be used for shorter check-ins, and text messaging supports ongoing reflection between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy around work, caregiving, or school commitments while keeping continuity of care.