Practitioner record · Checked 9 Oct 2026

Carisa Givens has been in practice 12 years and is licensed in Texas. Carisa lists stress, Anxiety, family conflicts and grief among 46 subjects on the BetterHelp roster.

Everything below is either quoted from Carisa's own BetterHelp listing, taken from public licensing records, or written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such. Nothing here is an availability promise, a review, or a rating.

12years in practice
46subjects listed
8approaches listed
2languages spoken

01 · Who Carisa works with

Carisa works with stress, Anxiety, family conflicts and grief

Carisa lists 16 specialisms and 30 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Carisa chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

Specialisms
  • Stress, Anxiety
  • Family conflicts
  • Grief
  • Career difficulties
  • Coping with life changes
  • LGBT
  • Relationship issues
  • Intimacy-related issues
  • Sleeping disorders
  • Parenting issues
  • Anger management
  • Self esteem
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Depression
  • Coaching
  • Compassion fatigue
Also experienced with
  • Attachment issues
  • Blended family issues
  • Caregiver issues and stress
  • Codependency
  • Commitment issues
  • Communication problems
  • Control issues
  • Dependent personality
  • Emptiness
  • Family of origin issues
  • Family problems
  • Forgiveness
  • Guilt and shame
  • Hospice and end-of-life counseling
  • Isolation / loneliness
  • Jealousy
  • Life purpose
  • Multicultural concerns
  • Narcissism
  • Panic disorder and panic attacks
  • Postpartum depression
  • Pregnancy and childbirth
  • Prejudice and discrimination
  • Self-harm
  • Self-love
  • Sexuality
  • Social anxiety and phobia
  • Women's issues
  • Workplace issues
  • Young adult issues

02 · In Carisa's own words

What Carisa says about the work

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

Hello, My name is Carisa Bustillos Givens, and I have been counseling clients from a wide range of backgrounds for the past 15 years. I am a Professional Counselor licensed in Texas, focused on providing assistance with a wide range of concerns, including crisis, grief, loss and career counseling services and specializing in work and career-related stress, family challenges, blended families, women's and parents' issues, and mediation services. My counseling style is warm and interactive. I believe in treating every individual with respect, sensitivity, and compassion, and I don't believe in stigmatizing labels. My approach combines cognitive-behavioral, humanistic, and solution-focused counseling, and I will tailor our communication and treatment plan to meet your unique and specific needs.

You are courageous for seeking and working towards a more fulfilling and happier life. Sometimes taking the first steps towards a change can cause anxiety or nervousness. If you are ready to take that step I am here to support and empower you.

I look forward to working with you!

Carisa Givens, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Carisa works

The 8 approaches Carisa lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Carisa lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Carisa'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 Carisa runs a session.

Acceptance and Commitment TherapyACT
Rather than trying to argue a painful thought away, ACT works on loosening its grip and getting on with what matters to you anyway. Sessions spend real time naming your values, then building action around them while difficult feelings are still present.
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.
Narrative Therapy
Treats the story you tell about your life as something that can be examined and retold rather than as the plain facts. Separates the person from the problem - “the anxiety” rather than “your anxiety” - to make room for the parts the current story leaves out.
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

Carisa 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 Carisa'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 Carisa at this point.

  2. Naming Carisa specifically

    BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Carisa 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 Carisa.

  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

4 questions worth asking Carisa

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

  • “You list both Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Client-Centred 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.

  • “You offer sessions in English and Spanish. Does the work change depending on which we use?”

    People often reach different material in a first language than in a second. Worth naming before you choose.

06 · Practical details

Credentials and licensing

Credential
LPC
Licensed in
Texas
Licence
TX LPC 63292, OR LPC C6984
Licence number
63292
Licence expires
31 Dec 2026
NPI
1124525480
Years in practice
12
Gender
Female
Languages
English, Spanish
International clients
Accepted
Listed since
15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Carisa'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 9 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 Carisa. 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.

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