Matthew Dugan
Compassionate counselor focused on practical change
- Credentials
- LPC
- Experience
- 23 years
- Licensed in
- South Carolina
- Languages
- English
- Format
- Online sessions
About Matthew
Matthew Dugan is an LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor) with 23 years of clinical experience. He focuses on common concerns parents bring up - stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, trauma, grief, and relationship or family issues. He also works with concerns around intimacy, self-esteem, anger, career changes, and identity-related stressors.
He speaks English and practices from South Carolina. In sessions he keeps the work practical and straightforward. He uses tools from cognitive behavioral therapy to notice patterns and try small changes.
Background and approach
He also draws on client-centered work to follow what feels most important to each person. Mindfulness practices and parts of dialectical behavior therapy help with emotional regulation and coping skills. For trauma-related concerns he can use Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, when appropriate, to address painful memories.
Motivational interviewing ideas help people who are struggling with substance use or big life changes. He tailors these methods to what a person wants to work on most. Matthew aims to reduce suffering and help people build a life that feels manageable and meaningful.
He communicates clearly about approaches and collaborates on goals. Sessions are offered by video, phone, live chat, and text-based messaging to fit different schedules. To begin, a person selects Start Therapy, completes a short questionnaire, and schedules according to the matching and availability process.
Fees vary with location and use a cancellable subscription model.
How therapeutic approaches work for online care
Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and following what matters most to the person. The therapist offers understanding and helps the client set their own goals, which can be especially useful when sorting parenting stress or family concerns.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps identify unhelpful thoughts and routines and tests small changes to see if they improve mood or behavior. It is practical for anxiety, depression, and coping with life transitions.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an approach used for trauma work that helps process painful memories and reduce their emotional impact. It is introduced carefully and used when both therapist and client agree it is appropriate.
Choosing the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences, and what has or has not helped in the past to shape a plan. That collaborative process helps decide whether CBT, EMDR, mindfulness practices, or a mix of methods makes the most sense.
Online therapy offers practical flexibility. Video calls let people meet face-to-face without travel, phone sessions can fit tight schedules, and live chat or message-based sessions support shorter check-ins or ongoing communication. These options make it easier to keep consistent care while balancing family and work demands.
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.
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
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
Also works with
- Abandonment
- Anger management
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- HIV / AIDS
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Relationship issues
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexuality
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Trauma and abuse
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 23 years
- Licensed
- South Carolina
- Languages
- English
Next step
Talk to Matthew
- Takes a few minutes
- Nothing to set up just to look
- Stop at any point