Therapist Laura Shaffner Photo

Laura Shaffner, LCSW

Stress, Anxiety Relationships Family conflicts Parenting issues Self esteem, Motivation
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About me

My name is Laura Shaffner, and I am a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and counselor. My counseling style is warm and intuitive. I especially enjoy working with people around life changes, self-esteem work, anxiety, and relationship issues.

I use the framework of holistic psychology primarily in my work, along with incorporating other frameworks that may best suit you. This may include cognitive-behavioral, client-centered, or psycho-dynamic counseling, along with yoga and mindfulness techniques as modalities for self-care. Holistic psychology believes that healing is a conscious process that can be lived daily through changes in our habits and patterns. The practice of holistic psychology is rooted in the ideas of freedom, choice, and ultimately, self-empowerment. I will tailor our dialog and treatment plan to meet your unique and specific needs. Please know that a counseling session with me is always a supportive, safe space to talk about anything that is on your mind.

Oftentimes, we seek counseling to get through a difficult experience, manage overwhelming emotions, or improve relationships. While counseling is effective in helping one get through isolated challenges, the goal of counseling is to help identify patterns of ideas, emotions, and behaviors that may contribute to repetitive maladaptive experiences. Our current experiences are often shaped by past experiences. It is common to get stuck in ways that make it difficult to move past a particular state of being. It is important to recognize that counseling is a collaborative effort. The true work of counseling often occurs between sessions in self-reflection, self-awareness, and a commitment to self-improvement.

It takes courage to seek for you to reach out and seek help. If you are ready to take that step, I am here to be your sounding board and help you with whatever concerns you are facing today. I very much look forward to working with you!

Professional experience

14yrs in practice
Stress, Anxiety Relationships Family conflicts Parenting issues Self esteem, Motivation

Additional areas of focus: Trauma and abuse, Grief, Sleeping disorders, Anger management, Career difficulties, Depression, Coping with life changes, Coaching, Adoption and Foster Care, Autism and Asperger Syndrome, Blended Family Issues, Caregiver issues and stress, Commitment Issues, Communication problems, Divorce and separation, Family of Origin Issues, Family Problems, Fertility Issues, Forgiveness, Life purpose, Pregnancy and childbirth, Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), Self-love, Social anxiety and phobia, Women's issues, Young Adult Issues

Clinical approaches: Mindfulness Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, Somatic Therapy

Services offered

Live Chat
Messaging

License information

ME LCSW LC21791

NJ LCSW 44SC05626200

Reviews

These quotes represent just a few of the many positive reviews that we have received for Laura Shaffner. We don't pay anyone to provide their review and they are all made voluntarily. Some people's experience receiving therapy with BetterHelp might be different.

I love working with Laura. It’s like talking to a friend, but also one that is really trying to understand me and my issues and I feel like she is on my side.

Written on Sep 21, 2022 after therapy with Laura for 1 year and 1 month on issues concerning stress, anxiety, relationship issues, intimacy-related issues, and adhd

Laura is an amazing therapist: Empathetic, encouraging, and always ready to discuss the difficult situations I have been facing.

Written on Jun 19, 2022 after therapy with Laura for 1 year and 8 months on issues concerning trauma and abuse, and grief

Laura is kind and attentive. She is easy to talk to and is very responsive. She is a great listener and sends me poignant readings that I reflect more on throughout the week.

Written on Apr 01, 2022 after therapy with Laura for 2 weeks on issues concerning stress, anxiety, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, eating disorders, self esteem, and adhd

Laura is without a doubt the most thoughtful person I've ever met. I often feel burdensome when I open up talking to people, but Laura has never made me feel anything but heard and accepted. Talk about a heart-of-gold!

Written on Nov 18, 2021 after therapy with Laura for 4 months on issues concerning stress, anxiety, self esteem, anger management, career difficulties, coping with life changes, coaching, and adhd

I’ve only worked with Laura for a few weeks but her work is amazing! I love that she sends me worksheets to fill out based on our live sessions. These worksheets help me understand myself better and teach me new things about my healing process. She is always attentive and checks in regularly to ask how I’m doing or even chat about my day. Laura’s schedule is very flexible and she is always considerate of my needs and schedule as well. I’ve tried many in person therapists offices, but no therapist has helped me as much as Laura has within these past few weeks.

Written on Sep 21, 2021 after therapy with Laura for 2 weeks on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, intimacy-related issues, parenting issues, self esteem, anger management, career difficulties, and coping with life changes

I’m enjoying my sessions with Laura. I can see that she really cares and gives you great advise that you can follow. I feel Comfortable talking about my struggles and I learned a lot of things I didn’t know before that really helps. I’m still a work in progress but compared to before, I see a difference in myself.

Written on Jul 20, 2021 after therapy with Laura for 2 weeks on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, relationship issues, grief, intimacy-related issues, sleeping disorders, self esteem, anger management, career difficulties, compassion fatigue, and adhd