Susan Ryder, LCPC - Therapist in Maine

About Susan

Susan Ryder is a licensed clinical professional counselor with 17 years of experience. She offers a calm, straightforward approach that focuses on what matters to the person in front of her. She encourages people to name their goals and build on the strengths they already have.

Susan uses practical methods to help with stress, anxiety, low self-esteem, depression, and big life changes. She also addresses parenting concerns, relationship and intimacy issues, addiction and process addictions, grief, and compassion fatigue.

Background and approach

Sessions focus on clear steps people can take between meetings. Her work draws on client-centered ideas that treat the person as the expert in their own life. She also uses cognitive behavioral techniques to notice and change unhelpful thinking.

Motivational interviewing and solution-focused tools help people find workable next steps and stay motivated. In sessions she listens first, then offers skills and experiments you can try. She pays attention to how daily routines, communication, and responsibilities affect mood and behavior.

Practical changes often build momentum quickly when they fit a person’s real life. Susan practices in Maine and conducts sessions in English. She supports concerns across a wide range including parenting, family challenges, postpartum depression, aging and caregiver stress, first responder issues, and seasonal mood changes.

She aims to make therapy clear, direct, and useful for people taking the step to reach out.

How therapeutic approaches translate to online sessions

Client-centered therapy centers the person’s own goals and life story. The therapist listens carefully and follows the person’s lead, helping them clarify what matters and build on existing strengths. This approach helps when someone needs space to sort values, parenting priorities, or a major life change.

Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, focuses on how thoughts, feelings, and routines interact. It uses simple exercises to test unhelpful beliefs and develop new habits that improve mood and functioning. CBT often helps with anxiety, depression, and day-to-day stress by giving concrete tools to try between sessions.

Motivational interviewing is a short, collaborative approach that helps people find their own reasons to change. It’s useful for addressing motivation around addictions, lifestyle shifts, or parenting goals and pairs well with practical planning work.

Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the work. The therapist will talk with the person about their needs, goals, and preferences, and together they will try methods that fit. Sessions can shift over time as priorities change.

Online therapy offers flexibility through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text messaging. These options make it easier to fit counseling into busy days, manage caregiving responsibilities, or continue work while traveling. Many people find that having multiple communication formats helps them practice new skills and stay connected between meetings.

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.

Motivational Interviewing

A way of working through mixed feelings about change without being pushed. The therapist helps you weigh things up and find your own reasons, which often makes a difficult decision feel less stuck.

Frequently asked questions

What issues does Susan commonly address?

She works with stress, anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, parenting concerns, relationship and intimacy issues, grief, addiction and process addictions, compassion fatigue, ADHD, and related life changes.

What is her general therapy style?

Her style is client-centered and practical. She listens first, then helps people try clear, manageable steps between sessions.

How long has she practiced?

She has 17 years of professional work experience as a counselor in clinical settings and community work.

Where is she licensed and based?

Susan is a Maine licensed clinical professional counselor, listed as ME LCPC CC2739, and practices in Maine.

Which languages are supported for sessions?

Sessions are offered in English.

What session formats are available?

Therapy is delivered by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to fit different needs and schedules.

How are fees handled?

Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.

How does someone begin working with her?

Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule according to therapist availability.

Specialties and expertise

Top specialties

Also works with

Therapeutic approaches

Experience: 17 years
Licensed: Maine
Languages: English

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