PuttingFamilyFirst

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CT Portrait of Christine Topping
Online therapist

Christine Topping

Practical support for families and relationships

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Credentials
LMFT
Experience
8 years
Licensed in
Iowa
Languages
English
Format
Online sessions

About Christine

Christine Topping is a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) practicing in Iowa. She brings eight years of clinical experience helping people navigate relationship strain, parenting challenges, grief, anxiety, depression, and other life transitions. Her work covers a broad range of family and parenting concerns.

Christine emphasizes a respectful, nonjudgmental approach with each person she meets. She meets clients where they are and adapts methods to fit practical goals. Sessions focus on clear steps people can use at home, not on jargon.

Background and approach

Christine has supported couples through divorce and co-parenting arrangements and has training in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, which helps caregivers and young children connect and improve behavior. Her style blends practical skill-building with attention to values and relationships. She uses tools from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to clarify what matters most.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy techniques help people manage intense emotions and reduce impulsive reactions. Christine also draws on the Gottman Method to address couple communication and strengthen relationship habits. Narrative and solution-focused ideas guide short-term planning and story-based meaning work when that fits a client’s needs.

She works collaboratively with clients to choose the tactics that make sense for their family. Overall, she aims to balance support with gentle challenge. Christine expects change to be gradual and practical, and she helps families take concrete steps toward healthier patterns.

Her practice is geared toward real-life improvement in family and parenting situations.

Approach-driven online therapy for families and relationships

Christine uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help people identify their core values and take small steps toward a life that matters to them. ACT is focused on practical actions and on learning to live with difficult thoughts rather than getting stuck in them. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) provides skills for managing intense emotions, reducing impulsive behavior, and improving relationships through practical emotion regulation and distress tolerance techniques. The Gottman Method offers structured tools for couples to improve communication, reduce conflict patterns, and build positive interaction habits.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Christine collaborates with each client to decide which methods fit their goals, family situation, and preferences. She tailors sessions so the chosen approaches match what the family or individual actually needs, and she adjusts plans as progress is made.

Online sessions are offered by video calls, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging to provide flexibility. These options make it easier to fit therapy into busy family schedules, maintain continuity after life changes, and access support from home. Licensed professionals can use these formats to teach skills, coach parenting interactions, work on couple communication, and support coping with stress and transitions.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Less about arguing with difficult thoughts, more about loosening their grip and acting on what matters to you anyway. Values and committed action carry the work, which suits conversation at a distance.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

Concrete skills for riding out strong emotion, tolerating distress, and handling relationships without things escalating. The skills are practised in daily life, so between-session support by message or phone fits naturally.

Gottman Method

A research-based framework for couples, focused on how partners argue, repair, and stay connected. Practical and structured, with exercises to try between sessions.

Frequently asked questions

What kinds of concerns does she address?
She works with a wide range of issues including stress, anxiety, relationship and parenting problems, grief, depression, addictions, ADHD, and family-focused topics such as attachment, blended family issues, and co-parenting after divorce.
What is the therapy style like?
Her style is warm and nonjudgmental while also practical. She combines skill-building, values-focused work, and communication strategies so sessions focus on usable steps families can try between meetings.
How much clinical experience does she have?
Christine has eight years of experience as a licensed clinician working with couples, families, and individuals across a range of concerns.
What are her credentials and location?
She is an LMFT licensed in Iowa, IA LMFT 076628, and practices with a focus on family and parenting issues.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
What session formats are available?
She provides therapy through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to fit different needs and schedules.
How are sessions paid for?
Costs vary with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I get started with therapy?
Begin by selecting the Start Therapy button, completing a short matching questionnaire, and then scheduling sessions according to the therapist's availability.

Specialties and expertise

Top specialties

Also works with

Therapeutic approaches

Experience
8 years
Licensed
Iowa
Languages
English

Next step

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