Therapist Valerie  Johnson-Cardoso Photo

Valerie Johnson-Cardoso, LMHC

Stress, Anxiety Addictions LGBTQ+ Relationships Depression
Video Phone Live Chat Messaging

About me

I have worked as a mental health counselor for over 30 years. My locations of employment are Florida and Pennsylvania. I have worked in Residential Mental Health and Residential Substance Abuse. I was a school teacher for 16 years teaching students with learning differences, emotional issues, autism and developmentally delayed (adults, teens and children). While working as a a teacher I had a private practice in the evenings and weekends. I have knowledge in the area of Religious trauma syndrome and faith transitioning. In Pennsylvania. I worked in homes and day treatment facilities with children and adults. There were people of all ages during my private practice and working for agencies.

There are different ways to address issues for each of us. What works for one may not work for another. Working as a team helps us all to deal with our issues to make our lives more peaceful and calm. There are many times we can make a few changes in our life to acquire these. Life is a journey. We have the opportunity to learn ways to cope with our lives. Change is a process on our journey. Many times we have control only of our actions and our response to these changes. Our critic can be our worst enemy and can be relentless in beating us up. Our critic was educated from childhood. My goal for my life for quite some time has been to disarm my critic and love myself.
I am looking forward to working to build trust and make it safe environment for you to express your feelings without feeling judged.

Professional experience

30yrs in practice
Stress, Anxiety Addictions LGBTQ+ Relationships Depression

Additional areas of focus: Family conflicts, Trauma and abuse, Grief, Intimacy-related issues, Eating disorders, Parenting issues, Anger management, Self esteem, Career difficulties, Bipolar disorder, Coping with life changes, Compassion fatigue, ADHD, Abandonment, Aging and Geriatric Issues, Antisocial Personality, Attachment Issues, Autism and Asperger Syndrome, BDSM, Kink, Alternative Sex Culture, Blended Family Issues, Body Image, Cancer, Caregiver Issues and Stress, Co-morbidity, Codependency, Commitment Issues, Communication Problems, Control Issues, Coping with Natural or Human-Caused Disaster, Dependent Personality, Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD), Divorce and Separation, Domestic Violence, Drug and Alcohol Addiction, Eating and Food-Related Issues, Emptiness, Family of Origin Issues, Family Problems, Fatherhood Issues, First Responder Issues, Forgiveness, Gender Dysphoria, Guilt and Shame, HIV / AIDS, Hoarding, Hospice and End of Life Counseling, Impulsivity, Infidelity, Intellectual Disability, Isolation / Loneliness, Jealousy, Life Purpose, Midlife Crisis, Military and Veterans Issues, Money and Financial Issues, Mood Disorders, Multicultural Concerns, Narcissism, Obsessions, Compulsions, and OCD, Panic Disorder and Panic Attacks, Paranoia, Personality Disorders, Phobias, Polyamory / Nonmonogamous Relationships, Postpartum Depression, Post-traumatic Stress, Pregnancy and Childbirth, Prejudice and Discrimination, Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling), Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), Self-Harm, Self-Love, Sex Addiction, Sexual Assault and Abuse, Sexuality, Smoking/Vaping Cessation, Social Anxiety and Phobia, Traumatic Brain Injury, Women's Issues, Workplace Issues, Young Adult Issues

Clinical approaches: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), Existential Therapy, Hypnotherapy, Imago Relationship Therapy, Mindfulness Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Narrative Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy, Internal Family Systems

Services offered

Video
Phone
Live Chat
Messaging

License information

FL LMHC MH5690

Reviews

These quotes represent just a few of the many positive reviews that we have received for Valerie Johnson-Cardoso. 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.

So lucky to have been matched up with Valerie! This is my first time doing therapy and I was lucky to get matched with Val right away. She is very supportive, compassionate, and makes you feel very comfortable.

Written on Mar 05, 2024 after therapy with Valerie for 4 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, family conflicts, grief, self esteem, career difficulties, and adhd

She is the absolute bomb. She is like talking to a old friend rather than a certified professional

Written on Feb 12, 2024 after therapy with Valerie for 1 month on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, sleeping disorders, parenting issues, self esteem, bipolar disorder, coping with life changes, and adhd

Valerie is truly exceptional! Throughout our few months of working together, I've consistently felt supported, seen, and heard. Her insightful questions and wisdom have significantly enriched her approach. I'm incredibly grateful that Betterhelp paired me with Val—I highly recommend her!

Written on Jan 09, 2024 after therapy with Valerie for 2 months on issues concerning depression, self esteem, and career difficulties

She does a good job.

Written on Jan 02, 2024 after therapy with Valerie for 8 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, and relationship issues

She is very professional and is great at what she does. Shes very calming and I feel very at ease and not uncomfortable. She helps me in so many ways and gives me great ways to cope and figure out my problems in a healthier way. She's very knowledgeable as well.

Written on Dec 24, 2023 after therapy with Valerie for 2 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, self esteem, career difficulties, bipolar disorder, coping with life changes, coaching, and adhd

I love my sessions with Valerie. I have had multiple therapists and none of them have helped me like she has. What a positive person that makes you smile! She helps me have perspective, be mindful, and love myself, and I look forward to speaking with her every week. Seriously, what a supportive, open-minded, kind therapist. She also loves music, which is a plus to me! I have smiled, laughed and cried all at the same time with Valerie, and I feel myself healing much of the wounds I have with the lack of greatly empathetic parenting I received.

Written on Nov 08, 2023 after therapy with Valerie for 1 month on issues concerning stress, anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, sleeping disorders, parenting issues, self esteem, anger management, coping with life changes, and adhd