01 · Who Autumn works with

Autumn works with stress, Anxiety, family conflicts and trauma and abuse

Autumn lists 13 specialisms and 19 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Autumn chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Autumn's own words

What Autumn says about the work

Reproduced in full and unedited - not summarised, not tightened, not rewritten in a house voice.

Hello! My name is Autumn and I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 9 years of experience providing therapy services. I have worked in a wide range of therapeutic settings including: private practice, outpatient, and school-based. I work with clients affected by depression, anxiety, trauma, low self-esteem, lack of motivation, life transitions, family conflicts, and relationship challenges.

I was born and raised in Orange County, California, and currently reside in Nashville, Tennessee. I received an undergraduate degree in Psychology and a Master's degree in Social Work from the University of Southern California.

I use a client-centered approach. This means that I begin where you are and view you as the experts on your life. It also means that you determine the direction and depth of therapy. I primarily use evidenced-based techniques, including: cognitive behavioral therapy, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, and solution-focused therapy. However, based on your needs/presenting problems, I may also incorporate attachment-based therapy and psychodynamic therapy.

I would describe my style as warm, real, and supportive. For me, the therapeutic relationship is important. I want you to not only feel comfortable with me but also to trust me. Therapy requires one to be vulnerable, which doesn’t happen if there isn’t a good rapport and therapeutic alliance. Collaboration is also important. Together we will work on establishing goals and steps for you to help overcome your current problems.

Outside of my work as a therapist, I enjoy playing soccer, watching sports, reading, cooking, spending time with my husband and children, and traveling to new places. Thank you for taking the time to learn about me! I look forward to helping you in any way I can!

Autumn Altamirano, on the BetterHelp listing · read 7 Oct 2026

03 · How Autumn works

The 8 approaches Autumn lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Autumn lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Autumn's - a general explanation of what each method is, so the list means something before you have spoken to anybody. They are not a claim about how Autumn runs a session.

Attachment-Based Therapy

Reads present-day relationship difficulty through the lens of how safety and closeness were learned early on. The therapeutic relationship itself is treated as part of the work, because it is where the pattern tends to show up first.

Client-Centred TherapyPerson-centred · Rogerian

The therapist does not steer toward a technique or a diagnosis. They offer sustained, non-judgemental attention and reflect back what they hear, on the premise that people find their own direction when they are genuinely listened to. Often what people mean by “someone who just gets it”.

Cognitive Behavioural TherapyCBT

Structured, present-focused work on the loop between what you think, how you feel and what you then do. Usually means noticing a thought pattern in the room, testing it against evidence, and practising something different between sessions. Among the most heavily researched talking therapies for depression and anxiety.

Mindfulness-Based TherapyMBCT

Trains attention on what is happening right now - body, breath, the thought as it arrives - so distress can be observed rather than automatically acted on. Strongest evidence is in preventing depression from recurring, and it is usually taught as a practice you keep doing outside the session.

Motivational InterviewingMI

A way of talking about change with somebody who is genuinely in two minds about it. The therapist does not argue for the change; they help you say your own reasons out loud, which is the part that predicts whether it happens. Common around substance use and health behaviour.

Psychodynamic Therapy

Works on the assumption that current patterns - in relationships, at work, in how you treat yourself - have a history, and that seeing the history loosens the pattern. Less structured than CBT, usually longer, and more interested in what comes up unbidden than in a weekly agenda.

Solution-Focused Brief TherapySFBT

Starts from where you want to end up rather than from how you got here. Sessions look for the times the problem is already smaller and work out what is different about those, so the number of sessions tends to be short and the work concrete.

Trauma-Focused TherapyTF-CBT · trauma-informed

CBT adapted for people whose difficulty is rooted in a frightening or overwhelming event. Pacing is the point: safety and stabilisation come first, the memory itself is approached gradually and only when you are ready, and the aim is that recalling it stops hijacking the present.

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Autumn practises through BetterHelp, so the route in is BetterHelp's. This is that sequence, written by Maker Therapy from the platform's published process - not a description of Autumn's own practice, and not a promise about how quickly anything happens.

1. A questionnaire, not a booking form

   BetterHelp opens with a set of questions about what you are dealing with, what you want from therapy, and any preferences on the therapist. You are not booking Autumn at this point.

2. Naming Autumn specifically

   BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Autumn is a step you have to take. There is a field for requesting a specific therapist during sign-up, and you can switch afterwards from your account. Starting from a link on this page does not by itself assign you to Autumn.

3. If the caseload is full

   You will be offered somebody else rather than put on a waitlist. Worth knowing, because it is easy to assume a match is the person you asked for.

4. The first conversation

   A first session is typically history and orientation: what brought you, what has been tried, what you want to be different. It is also where the questions in the next section belong.

5. If the fit is wrong

   Changing therapist on BetterHelp does not need a reason. A first session that does not click is common and is not a verdict on therapy. That option existing is the main practical difference between a platform and a private practice.

05 · Before you commit

3 questions worth asking Autumn

Built from what Autumn actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Autumn's - Autumn has not seen them and is under no obligation to answer any of them.

• “You list both Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Attachment-Based Therapy. Which do you lean on with someone like me?”

  Those two point in different directions - one structured and led by the therapist, the other led by you. The answer tells you what the sessions will actually feel like.

• “How do you decide when someone is ready to work on a traumatic memory itself?”

  Pacing is the biggest safety question in trauma work. A clear, unhurried answer here matters more than any credential.

• “How do you handle the gap between sessions if something comes up?”

  On BetterHelp this varies a great deal by therapist. Better to know the rhythm now than to discover it on a bad week.

06 · Practical details

Credentials and licensing

Credential

LCSW

Licensed in

Tennessee

Licence

CA LCSW 90439, TN LCSW 7834

Licence number

90439

Licence expires

31 Jul 2027

NPI

1194198226

Years in practice

10

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

9 Jun 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Autumn's name, credential, state, subjects, approaches and biography are read from BetterHelp's therapist roster, which Maker Therapy re-reads once a day; this page reflects the reading taken on 7 Oct 2026. The licence number and NPI are cross-checked against public registers.

The plain-English method descriptions, the first-session walkthrough and the questions are written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such wherever they appear.

Maker Therapy is not BetterHelp, does not take bookings, and has not met Autumn. There are no reviews or ratings on this page because we have no way to verify one. If you start therapy through a link here, we may be paid a commission - it does not change your price and it does not affect who appears here or in what order.

Something on this page wrong or out of date? Report it and it will be checked against the source.