About Yuridia
Yuridia (Valerie) Polonsky is a Florida licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) with 15 years of experience. She focuses on helping people who are dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, and major life changes. She speaks English and Spanish and aims to make sessions approachable and straightforward.
Her work centers on understanding each person's story and current struggles. She uses a mix of practical skills and thoughtful conversation to help people manage emotions and cope with difficult situations.
Background and approach
Sessions often include learning ways to handle anxiety, improve sleep, or respond to anger more effectively. Valerie draws from several established methods including cognitive behavioral techniques and acceptance and commitment ideas. She also uses attachment-based and client-centered approaches to guide conversations about relationships, intimacy, and self-worth.
Dialectical behavior ideas may be used to teach concrete skills when emotions feel overwhelming. She commonly supports people dealing with grief, trauma and abuse, addiction concerns, parenting strain, and career-related stress. Additional focus areas listed include body image, caregiver stress, blended family issues, and attention-related concerns such as ADHD.
The emphasis is on practical steps and clear goals rather than jargon. People who choose her tend to want a direct, compassionate therapist who balances real-world strategies with empathic listening. She encourages clients to set realistic goals and build small habits that add up to meaningful change.
The first sessions typically clarify priorities and plan manageable next steps.
Therapeutic approaches that translate to online care
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people notice their thoughts without getting stuck in them and focus on actions that match what matters most. It can be useful for anxiety, life changes, and low mood by shifting attention toward values-based steps. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) teaches practical strategies to change thought patterns and behaviors that keep problems going. It often includes clear exercises and homework to reduce anxiety, improve sleep, or manage mood.Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences, and what feels most helpful, then try approaches that fit the person's needs. Together they track progress and adjust methods so sessions stay relevant and useful.
Online sessions are offered by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging. Video calls let people use visual cues and longer conversations, while phone sessions work well when bandwidth is limited or when someone prefers not to be on camera. Live chat or text-based messaging can be good for quick check-ins, brief coaching, or fitting support into a busy day. These options make it easier to get consistent help and to practice new skills between meetings.
Questions people ask
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What this therapist works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Family conflicts
- Self esteem
Also listed
- Abandonment
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Cancer
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Co-morbidity
- Coaching
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Depression
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Fertility issues
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Hoarding
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Immigration issues
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Multicultural concerns
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Relationship issues
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexuality
- Sleeping disorders
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Trauma and abuse
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Existential Therapy
- Gottman Method
- Imago Relationship Therapy
- Jungian Therapy
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Somatic Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
- Internal Family Systems
- Experience
- 15 years
- Licensed
- Florida
- Languages
- English, Spanish
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