Kayla Ernst, LPC - Therapist in South Carolina

About Kayla

Kayla Ernst is a licensed professional counselor who focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, trauma, and depression. She writes plainly and listens closely so parents and caregivers can explain concerns without feeling judged. Kayla aims to help clients move past intrusive thoughts, painful memories, and stuck patterns so they can take clearer action in daily life.

Her sessions mix practical skill work with deeper trauma processing. She uses Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR, to work on traumatic memories.

Background and approach

She also uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, to help people identify values and take steps that feel meaningful. Kayla brings four years of counseling experience and holds the Licensed Professional Counselor credential, LPC. She practices in South Carolina and conducts sessions in English.

She offers multiple online formats including video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. In therapy she keeps things collaborative and concrete. Sessions focus on what is most pressing for the client and on small, doable strategies.

Conversations include exploring emotions, practicing coping skills, and deciding on next steps that align with what matters to the person. To begin, Kayla asks new clients to complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule a session. Her approach aims to help people feel more agency over their thoughts and choices while working through grief, relationship stress, mood challenges, and other concerns.

Approaches used online for trauma and values-driven change

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, helps people notice painful thoughts without getting controlled by them and then choose actions that match their values. It is useful for anxiety, low mood, and life transitions when someone wants clearer direction. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, EMDR, focuses on processing painful or traumatic memories so they lose some of their emotional intensity; it is often used when past events keep coming back in flashbacks or intrusive thoughts. Dialectical Behavior Therapy, DBT, teaches practical coping skills for intense emotions and relationship stress and is helpful when people struggle with impulsivity or strong mood swings.

Choosing the right approach is a team effort. The therapist will talk with each person about goals, history, and what feels most useful. Together they will try methods that match the concern and adjust the plan if something does not fit well.

Online therapy offers flexibility through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging. These options make it easier to fit sessions into a busy schedule and to check in between meetings for skill practice and support. Licensed professionals can guide trauma work and skill building using these formats while tailoring pace and techniques to each person’s needs.

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.

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.

Frequently asked questions

What kinds of concerns does Kayla address?

She works with stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, depression, grief, bipolar symptoms, relationship and family issues, anger, and self-esteem concerns among other areas.

What is her general approach in sessions?

Sessions are collaborative and practical. She uses talk, skill practice, and trauma processing to help clients manage symptoms and make value-driven choices.

How long has she been practicing?

Kayla has four years of clinical experience working with the issues listed in her profile.

What are her credentials and where does she practice?

She is a Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC, licensed in South Carolina with license number SC LPC 8409 and practices from that state.

Which languages are offered for sessions?

Sessions are offered in English.

What session formats are available?

She offers video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging for remote work.

How are sessions paid for and what do they cost?

Costs vary with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.

How do I get started with therapy?

Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a session based on therapist availability.

Specialties and expertise

Top specialties

Also works with

Therapeutic approaches

Experience: 4 years
Licensed: South Carolina
Languages: English

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