Wendy Goffena , LCSW

Wendy Goffena is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with nine years of clinical practice. She brings many years in mental health services and a background in community-based care in Montana. She aims to make therapy straightforward and practical for people feeling overwhelmed by life changes or long-term struggles.

She practices in a community mental health setting and has worked across many care environments. That experience includes work with adults facing depression, anxiety, trauma, grief, anger, and complex interpersonal problems. She also has experience supporting people with chronic illness and caregiving stress.

Her style is collaborative and client-centered. She views people as the experts on their own lives and helps them set achievable goals. Sessions focus on identifying strengths, building coping skills, and creating steps that fit daily life.

Wendy uses a mix of approaches depending on need. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps people spot the links between thoughts and behavior. Dialectical Behavior Therapy focuses on mood regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal skills. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing can be part of trauma work when appropriate.

People who prefer practical tools and clear steps often do well with her approach. She also works with parenting and family concerns, aging and geriatric questions, body image and caregiver stress, and issues common in midlife transitions. Wendy lives in Montana and brings a down-to-earth, values-focused perspective to therapy.

How these approaches translate to online therapy

Wendy commonly draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people notice and change unhelpful thought and behavior patterns; this approach works well for anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and coping with life changes. She also uses Dialectical Behavior Therapy to teach mood regulation, distress tolerance, mindfulness, and interpersonal skills useful for strong emotions and relationship strain. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing can be included for people processing past trauma, offering structured steps to reduce the hold of traumatic memories.

Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and what has or has not helped in the past. Together they adjust methods over time so sessions stay focused on practical progress and what feels most helpful.

Online formats make it easier to fit therapy into busy lives. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation when a longer session is needed. Phone sessions work well when bandwidth is limited or the camera isn’t wanted. Live chat and text-based messaging offer brief check-ins, skill practice, and flexible ways to communicate between sessions. These options support regular contact and make it easier to use therapeutic tools in day-to-day routines.