Lisa Tomala
Calm, practical support for parenting challenges
- Credentials
- LPC
- Experience
- 20 years
- Licensed in
- Virginia
- Languages
- English
- Format
- Online sessions
About Lisa
Lisa Tomala is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with about 20 years of clinical experience. She focuses on concerns parents and adults often face, including trauma and abuse, grief, depression, anxiety, ADHD, stress, addiction, sleep problems, parenting, and relationship or intimacy issues. Lisa writes plainly and listens closely to understand what is most pressing for each person.
She draws on a mix of therapeutic approaches to match what a person needs in the moment.
Background and approach
That can mean looking at past patterns that shape current behavior, practicing new ways to think about problems, or using short-term strategies to reduce immediate distress. Lisa adjusts pace based on readiness and comfort. Her training includes a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Science in Professional Counseling, and she holds licensure as an LPC in Virginia.
She has worked with teens, adults, and active-duty service members on issues such as PTSD, substance use, depression, and grief. Personal experience with loss also informs her approach to bereavement work. In sessions she aims to create an open space where thoughts and feelings can be spoken without judgment.
She will help identify practical steps and small changes that can ease daily life. The goal is to shift from simply coping to feeling more authentic and well. Outside of work she spends time with family, hikes, paints, and cares for an Australian Cattle dog.
That balance informs a grounded, everyday approach to therapy.
Therapeutic approaches and how online sessions work
Lisa draws on evidence-based techniques that are easy to explain and use. One common approach she uses is cognitive-behavioral work, which helps identify unhelpful thoughts and try new ways of thinking and acting to reduce symptoms like anxiety, low mood, or sleep problems. Another approach she often uses is psychodynamic-informed work, which looks at how early experiences shape current patterns and relationships to help make sense of repeated difficulties.Finding the right mix of approaches is a collaborative process. Lisa discusses options with each person, considers their goals and comfort level, and adjusts methods over time. She partners with clients to try strategies, review progress, and change course when something is not helpful.
Online therapy offers flexibility for busy families and adults. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation from home, phone sessions work when video is not possible, and live chat or text-based messaging can provide brief check-ins or support between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into a crowded schedule while keeping treatment consistent and focused on practical steps.
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does Lisa commonly address?
How would you describe her therapeutic style?
What is her background and clinical experience?
What credentials and location are listed?
Which languages are supported and are international clients accepted?
What session formats are offered?
How does payment and cost work?
How do I begin therapy with her?
Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Bipolar disorder
Also works with
- Abandonment
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- Body image
- Cancer
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Depression
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Divorce and separation
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Relationship issues
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Self-harm
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sleeping disorders
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Stress, Anxiety
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
- Experience
- 20 years
- Licensed
- Virginia
- Languages
- English
Next step
Talk to Lisa
- Takes a few minutes
- Nothing to set up just to look
- Stop at any point