01 · Who Dr. works with

Dr. works with stress, Anxiety, relationship issues and trauma and abuse

Dr. lists 5 specialisms and 24 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Dr. chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Dr.'s own words

What Dr. says about the work

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

About Dr Cynthia

Before I went to school to become a psychotherapist, I was a teacher of Inner Guidance. I also taught the curriculum to become a teacher of Inner Guidance. We all have powerful internal senses that we tend to neglect: intuition, insight, instinct, imagination and deeper intelligence that grows sharper the more we use it.

Too often, our personal growth becomes confined at the surface of ourselves by the effects of childhood trauma and how we’re raised. Sometimes we don’t know there is so much more to us.

Once we develop accurate self-knowledge and learn what part of us is doing our thinking and making our decisions, then self mastery is within reach.

I help people unravel their personal predicaments and develop self mastery. Once we become more greatly empowered - we are equipped to know what we want in life and how to manifest it.

I received my CA license (lmft2980) in 1992, received my PhD in psychology in 1996. I wrote/published a book, “The Care and Feeding of Perfectionists “, 1998. Often we spot perfectionism in others but cannot recognize it ourselves. Many of us believe the Perfectionist is the best part of us, when really, it prevents us from liking ourselves. Each of us have at least 2 types of perfectionism (9 types in my book). If not neutralized, it blocks our growth by convincing us that we are not good enough. I help people replace perfectionism with a free internal Gift. The inner drive toward Excellence- which springs from the Self - is a beautiful world away from the pain of perfectionism- which is a push from a wounded ego. Once we connect to our Inner Self, we see ourselves and our world as it really is. Then life, healing and accomplishments can become wondrous easy.

Methods I use besides talk therapy:

Identifying and healing trauma Conscious breathing Dream analysis Focused meditation Inner Guidance Inner Child work The necessity for humor. EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprogramming.) FLASH (offshoot of EMDR) Interactive hypnotherapy Developing self knowledge Dismantling perfectionism Becoming present and living in the moment Accepting personal power Goal setting Couples Counseling

Dr. Cynthia Curnan, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Dr. works

The 4 approaches Dr. lists, in plain English

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

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.

Eye Movement Desensitisation and ReprocessingEMDR

A structured trauma protocol in which you hold a distressing memory in mind while following a repeated side-to-side cue. The mechanism is still debated; the outcome data in post-traumatic stress is strong enough that it appears in national treatment guidelines.

The Gottman Method

A couples approach built on decades of observational research into what distinguishes relationships that last. Structured and assessment-led: it maps friendship, conflict and shared meaning, then works on the specific mechanics of how the two of you argue.

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.

Also listed

• Hypnotherapy

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Dr. 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 Dr.'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 Dr. at this point.

2. Naming Dr. specifically

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

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 Dr.

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

• “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.

• “With 32 years in, what has changed most in how you work?”

  Long experience is only an advantage if it has been examined. This tends to surface whether it has.

• “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

California

Licence

CA LMFT 29820

Licence number

29820

Licence expires

31 May 2028

NPI

1871115188

Years in practice

32

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Dr.'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 Dr.. 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.