PuttingFamilyFirst

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SF Portrait of Shelly Flachs
Online therapist

Shelly Flachs

Practical, experienced therapy for everyday family stresses

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Credentials
LCSW
Experience
12 years
Licensed in
Illinois, Maine, Missouri
Languages
English
Format
Online sessions

About Shelly

Shelly Flachs is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) who brings 12 years of practice to her work with adults in Illinois. She focuses on practical tools and steady support to help people facing anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, and life transitions. Her style is direct and warm, aimed at making therapy feel clear and manageable for busy families and individuals.

Shelly draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), mindfulness, and Motivational Interviewing.

Background and approach

She uses these methods to help clients notice unhelpful patterns, build coping skills, and strengthen emotional connection. Sessions are geared toward small, doable steps rather than overwhelming plans. Her background includes work across varied concerns such as addictions, sleep and eating issues, parenting stresses, and compassion fatigue.

She also addresses challenges like ADHD, relationship and intimacy issues, and self-esteem struggles. The goal is practical change that fits daily life. Shelly holds Illinois and Maine LCSW credentials: IL LCSW 149.017053 and ME LCSW LC15258.

She provides services in English and offers several online session formats to fit different schedules. Parents looking for a straightforward, experienced clinician will find a calm, solutions-oriented approach. The focus is on clear steps, collaborative planning, and building skills that last beyond sessions.

Therapeutic approaches adapted for online care

Online sessions use structured methods like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy to tackle symptoms and teach skills. CBT focuses on identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors to reduce anxiety, depression, and stress. DBT emphasizes emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and clearer communication, which can help with intense emotions or relationship strain.

Finding the right approach happens together. The therapist will review your goals, try methods that match your needs, and adjust the plan based on what helps. This collaborative process aims to make sure techniques fit your life and your parenting or family demands.

Practical benefits of online therapy include flexible scheduling and multiple ways to connect. Video calls let you work face-to-face from home, phone sessions offer a simpler option, and live chat or text-based messaging can support brief check-ins and ongoing skill practice. These formats are useful for busy schedules and for staying consistent when life gets hectic.

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.

Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)

Attends to the emotions underneath a recurring argument or distance, and to the attachment needs driving them. Often used where a relationship keeps returning to the same painful loop.

Frequently asked questions

What concerns does this therapist address?
Areas of focus include stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, grief, bipolar disorder, depression, addictions, LGBT issues, relationship and family concerns, parenting, eating and sleeping issues, anger, self esteem, career changes, ADHD, and compassion fatigue.
What is the therapist's general approach in sessions?
Therapy combines Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Emotionally-Focused Therapy, mindfulness, and Motivational Interviewing to teach skills, shift patterns, and improve emotional connection.
How much clinical experience does she have?
She has 12 years of clinical experience working with a wide range of concerns and using several evidence-informed approaches.
Where is the therapist licensed and located?
Shelly is licensed as an LCSW in Illinois and Maine with the following details: IL LCSW 149.017053 and ME LCSW LC15258, and she works from Illinois.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can international clients work with this therapist?
International clients are not currently accepted.
What session formats are available?
Sessions can be conducted via video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to match different preferences and schedules.
How does cost and getting started work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability and uses a subscription that can be canceled at any time; to begin, select the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule based on therapist availability.

Specialties and expertise

Top specialties

Also works with

Therapeutic approaches

Experience
12 years
Licensed
Illinois, Maine, Missouri, Iowa
Languages
English

Next step

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