01 · Who Cheryl works with

Cheryl works with stress, Anxiety, addictions and relationship issues

Cheryl lists 14 specialisms and 16 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Cheryl chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Cheryl's own words

What Cheryl says about the work

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

If I am honest with myself, I got started in this field because I could not find someone to help me. Then, I met Cyndee. I liked her because she spelled her name in such a unique way, which is literally the reason I picked her! She helped me work through a few career-related things, then said, "You should be doing this!" and got on the phone with the admissions counselor at Adler Graduate school.

Most of my career I spent in labor, delivery, postpartum and nursery as an RN. I have also been a nurse manager in those areas. When I started to study in this field, I thought it would be helpful to be a psychiatric nurse. I worked in adult psych for 2 years. My first "real" therapy job was at Minnesota Adult and Teen Challenge. I worked their 3 years, until I launched my own recovery house where 6 men live in a peer-directed environment that I supervise.

I am an RN and LMFT. I have a lot of life experience. I am married and the mother of 3 grown children. I have expertise in individual counseling, couples counseling, parenting all ages, and life transitions. All my counseling is spiritually focused.

Cheryl Patterson, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Cheryl works

The 4 approaches Cheryl lists, in plain English

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

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”.

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.

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Cheryl 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 Cheryl'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 Cheryl at this point.

2. Naming Cheryl specifically

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

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 Cheryl

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

• “You list both Solution-Focused Brief 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.

06 · Practical details

Credentials and licensing

Credential

LMFT

Licensed in

Minnesota

Licence

MN LMFT 2782

Licence number

2782

Licence expires

31 Dec 2026

NPI

1285062372

Years in practice

4

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

26 Jun 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Cheryl'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 Cheryl. 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.