About Kathleen
Kathleen Lynch Gaffney is a licensed clinical social worker who aims to make therapy straightforward and approachable. She invites people to share what they are facing and listens without judgment. Reaching out is framed as a positive first step and she emphasizes steady support through the process.
With 35 years of experience, Kathleen has worked with a wide range of concerns including anxiety, stress, grief, depression, trauma and abuse, and coping with life changes.
Background and approach
She also helps people dealing with relationship and intimacy challenges, parenting strain, career questions, anger, self-esteem issues, and eating concerns. Her background includes work related to HIV and AIDS and she has supported people handling compassion fatigue and bipolar disorder. Kathleen uses practical, evidence-informed approaches in sessions.
She draws on cognitive behavioral techniques to spot and change unhelpful thinking and on acceptance and commitment ideas to build values-driven living. Mindfulness exercises and attachment-focused conversation help people notice patterns and improve emotional connection. Sessions are conversational and paced to each person.
She aims to be reliable and attentive, offering straightforward feedback and real-world strategies. The work tends to focus on small, doable changes that reduce distress and improve day-to-day functioning. Kathleen practices in New York and conducts sessions in English.
She welcomes people who want a steady, experienced clinician to listen and collaborate on practical steps forward.
Approaches that guide online sessions
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on noticing thoughts and feelings without getting stuck in them, then choosing actions that match personal values; it can help with anxiety, avoidance, and life transitions. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps people identify patterns of thinking that increase distress and replace them with clearer, more balanced thoughts and behaviors; it is often useful for anxiety, depression, and stress. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relationship patterns affect current emotional responses and helps people build healthier ways of relating.Kathleen works collaboratively to find the right mix of these approaches. She will discuss goals and preferences and adjust methods to match what helps most. Figuring out the best fit is part of the process rather than a one-time decision.
Online sessions are offered as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to make care more flexible. Video calls are useful for in-depth conversation and visual cues. Phone sessions work well when bandwidth is limited or when someone prefers not to be on camera. Live chat and text messaging allow brief check-ins, quick problem-solving, or ongoing support between longer sessions. These options help people fit therapy into busy lives and maintain continuity of care when in-person meetings are not possible.
Questions people ask
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How much clinical experience does she have?
What credentials and location are listed?
Which languages are supported and are international clients accepted?
What session formats are available online?
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How do I begin working with her?
What this therapist works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Family conflicts
- Trauma and abuse
Also listed
- ADHD
- Anger management
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Grief
- HIV / AIDS
- Intimacy-related issues
- Parenting issues
- Relationship issues
- Self esteem
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 35 years
- Licensed
- New York
- Languages
- English
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