Dr. Sonia Smith , LCSW

Dr. Sonia Smith is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 25 years of practice in New York. She focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, relationship and intimacy concerns, grief, depression, and substance-related issues. She also offers support around parenting, self-esteem, coping with life changes, and LGBT-related concerns.

Her work draws on client-centered and cognitive-behavioral ideas to keep sessions practical and goal-focused. She helps clients notice unhelpful thoughts, try new behaviors, and set short-term steps that fit everyday life. Motivational interviewing and solution-focused techniques are used when people want help finding their own motivation and identifying immediate next steps.

Her background includes long experience with trauma, domestic violence, and bereavement work. She has supported people dealing with abandonment, adoption and foster care questions, attachment issues, blended family dynamics, and communication problems. She also has experience with immigration-related stress, isolation and loneliness, and end-of-life concerns.

In sessions she aims to create a respectful, collaborative space where practical coping strategies are paired with attention to relationship patterns. She helps people recover balance after separation, loss, or difficult life changes, and coaches toward clearer goals when that feels helpful.

Therapy is offered in English from a New York base. Dr. Smith combines years of hands-on practice with down-to-earth methods to help people move forward.

Approaches that guide online sessions

Client-centered therapy focuses on listening and working at the client’s pace. It prioritizes the person's own goals and encourages clearer self-understanding, which can help with relationship struggles, self-esteem, and coping with life changes.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) breaks problems into thoughts, feelings, and actions. Sessions use practical exercises to test unhelpful thoughts and try new behaviors, which can reduce anxiety, depression, and stress reactions.

Motivational interviewing helps people find their own reasons to change and build momentum toward goals like reducing substance use or improving relationships. It centers on collaboration and supporting a person’s autonomy.

Choosing an approach is a team effort. The therapist will talk with the client about goals, try methods that match those goals, and adjust based on what works. Clients often combine elements from different approaches to meet immediate needs and longer-term aims.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video calls are useful for full conversations and visual connection. Phone sessions can be a good option when bandwidth is limited or a shorter check-in fits a busy day. Live chat and messaging suit quick check-ins, brief coaching, and ongoing encouragement between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into daily life while using the approaches above to focus on real, practical changes.