About L
L M (Loretta) Hartley-Bangs is a licensed social worker who helps people manage anxiety and stress. She draws on decades of experience to guide people through depression, trauma, addiction, and major life changes. Her tone is steady and practical, aimed at someone who needs clear help right now.
She uses a person-focused style that starts with listening. Loretta learns what matters to each person and sets goals together. Sessions typically cover coping skills, communication patterns, and steps to reduce anxiety and improve mood.
Background and approach
Over 36 years in practice, Loretta has worked with people facing caregiving strain, aging and geriatric concerns, and challenges related to family of origin. She also helps with codependency, substance use, and social anxiety and phobia. This background gives her a broad view of how life events and relationships affect mental health.
Her work includes practical tools drawn from cognitive behavioral approaches and skills for emotional regulation. She also uses client-centered conversations and motivational techniques to support change. People can expect straightforward strategies they can try between sessions.
Loretta holds the Licensed Independent Social Worker with Clinical Practice endorsement, SC LISW-CP, and practices in South Carolina. She provides care in English and combines clinical knowledge with a calm, compassionate approach to support steady progress.
Approach and access: therapy methods and online options
Client-centered therapy focuses on understanding each person's experience and priorities; sessions emphasize listening, empathy, and helping clients set their own goals. This approach can help people who need a steady, non-directive space to sort feelings and decide next steps.Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, looks at the links between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and teaches practical exercises. It is often used to reduce anxious thinking, manage mood shifts, and build small, testable changes in daily routines.
Dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT, adds skills for emotion regulation and distress tolerance. These tools can be useful for handling intense emotions, improving relationships, and reducing impulsive responses.
Loretta works collaboratively to identify which approach, or which combination, fits each person's needs and goals. She discusses options and adjusts the plan over time so therapy matches what is most helpful for the client.
Online sessions are offered as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to make care more flexible. Video calls are good for a full-session conversation, phone calls can fit into a busy day, and chat or text options allow brief check-ins or ongoing support between appointments. These formats help people fit care into their lives and maintain continuity over time.
Questions people ask
What concerns does Loretta support?
What is her therapy style like?
How much clinical experience does she have?
What are her credentials and where is she located?
Which languages are sessions offered in?
What session formats are available?
How is cost handled for sessions?
How do I begin working with her?
What this therapist works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Family conflicts
Also listed
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Bipolar disorder
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Codependency
- Communication problems
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Family of origin issues
- Life purpose
- Mood disorders
- Post-traumatic stress
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Trauma and abuse
- Women's issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 36 years
- Licensed
- South Carolina
- Languages
- English
We will earn a commission if you sign up through our link, at no cost to you.