Lara Ashbaugh , LPC

Lara Ashbaugh is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Missouri who draws on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy in her work. She focuses on women's issues among a broad set of concerns, and aims to help people manage anxiety, depression, grief, and life changes. Her approach is direct and compassionate, with attention to practical skills and values-based choices.

Lara spends sessions teaching clear coping tools for stress, emotion regulation, and addictive patterns. She helps people notice unhelpful thoughts and change behaviors that get in the way of daily life. Mindfulness practices are often used to steady attention and reduce reactivity.

She also supports those dealing with relationship and identity questions, including LGBT concerns and gender dysphoria, plus challenges like body image, fertility, adoption and foster care issues. Parenting strain, caregiver stress, and work or career frustrations are frequent topics she addresses. Lara pays attention to trauma and abuse history while helping people build safety and coping strategies.

Her style is warm and interactive. Sessions are collaborative conversations that aim to build on what is already working and add skills where needed. She avoids stigmatizing labels and treats each person with respect and sensitivity.

With ten years of clinical experience, Lara blends practical exercises with reflective dialogue. She will tailor the plan to a person’s goals and pace. People often leave sessions with specific steps to try between meetings.

Approach-driven online care that fits your life

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people clarify what matters most and take small steps toward those values while learning to live with difficult thoughts and feelings. It is useful for anxiety, depression, and life transitions. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors to reduce symptoms and improve daily functioning. It is practical for anxiety, low mood, and coping with stress. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) offers concrete skills for emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and improving relationships, which can be helpful for intense emotions and problems with coping.

Choosing the right approach is part of therapy. The therapist works collaboratively to match techniques to each person’s goals and preferences. Sessions typically start by identifying a few goals, then trying tools and adjusting the plan based on what helps most.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video is useful when face-to-face interaction matters, while phone sessions can work when bandwidth is limited. Live chat and text messaging make short check-ins or quick skill practice easier between sessions. These options make it simpler to fit therapy into a busy schedule and keep momentum between meetings.