PuttingFamilyFirst

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FB Portrait of Felicia Bates
Online therapist

Felicia Bates

Practical support for family and life changes

Credentials
LCSW
Experience
24 years
Licensed in
Indiana, Maine, New Jersey
Languages
English
Format
Online sessions

About Felicia

Felicia Bates is a licensed clinical social worker with over two decades of experience supporting people through difficult life changes. She practices in Indiana and brings a calm, respectful presence to sessions. Her work focuses on practical support for family concerns and parenting challenges.

She also helps with trauma, grief, stress, anxiety, mood struggles, and issues that affect daily functioning. Bates uses straightforward talk and collaborative planning to set clear goals.

Background and approach

She adapts conversations and plans to match each person’s situation and pace. Sessions are meant to be direct and useful, with tools clients can try between meetings. Her background includes long experience in areas such as adoption and foster care, blended family issues, caregiving stress, and family-of-origin problems.

She also addresses relationship patterns, communication problems, and the emotional impact of illness or loss. That variety informs how she shapes plans for families and individuals. Therapy draws on a mix of evidence-informed methods like cognitive behavioral techniques, acceptance and commitment ideas, and mindfulness skills.

Bates aims to help people build practical coping habits and clearer choices. She approaches work with sensitivity and a focus on what will help in day-to-day life. Taking the first step can feel hard, and she acknowledges that.

Her style is supportive and goal-oriented, intended to help parents and adults find workable changes they can keep.

Therapeutic approaches and online care that fit your life

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on helping people notice difficult thoughts and feelings without getting stuck in them, then choose actions that match their values. It is often useful for stress, anxiety, and life changes. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) looks at the links between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and teaches concrete skills to shift unhelpful patterns and reduce anxiety or low mood. Mindfulness Therapy builds attention to the present moment and simple practices to reduce reactivity and improve focus during stressful times.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and which methods feel most useful. Together they decide whether to emphasize ACT, CBT, mindfulness, or a mix of techniques, and adapt over time based on what helps.

Online sessions make it easier to fit therapy into busy family life. Video calls recreate a face-to-face conversation, phone sessions allow for flexibility, and live chat or text-based messaging can support short check-ins or between-session steadying. These options help people keep continuity of care and use strategies in real-world moments when they matter most.

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.

Client-Centered Therapy

The direction comes from you rather than from a set programme. The therapist offers a warm, non-judgemental space to think out loud and work at your own pace. Online, this rests on the relationship rather than on being in the same room.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT looks at the link between what you think, how you feel, and what you do. You work on noticing unhelpful patterns and practising steadier responses. It suits online sessions well, because much of the work happens between appointments and can be talked through from anywhere.

Frequently asked questions

What kinds of concerns does she address?
She works with a wide range of issues including family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, self esteem, stress, anxiety, depression, bipolar symptoms, parenting and relationship problems.
How would you describe her therapy style?
Her approach is respectful and down-to-earth. She uses short-term skills and collaborative planning so clients leave sessions with practical steps to try.
What is her clinical background?
She has 24 years of professional experience working with families and adults on emotional and practical issues arising from life changes and trauma.
What credentials and locations are on record?
She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker - LCSW, licensed in Maine (ME LCSW LC22065) and New Jersey (NJ LCSW 44SC06202200), and practices in Indiana.
Which languages are supported and can she work internationally?
Sessions are offered in English. She is not currently accepting international clients.
What session formats are available?
Sessions can be conducted via video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to fit different schedules and needs.
How are sessions paid for and what do they cost?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability. Sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin a therapy relationship?
To get started, select the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule according to therapist availability.

Next step

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