01 · Who Ethel works with

Ethel works with stress, Anxiety, trauma and abuse and grief

Ethel lists 9 specialisms and 38 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Ethel chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Ethel's own words

What Ethel says about the work

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

I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in the state of Connecticut with over 20 yrs. experience in areas that include trauma, anxiety, parenting challenges, ADHD, autism, racism, varying levels of depression, grief and loss and emotional/psychological impacts of the pandemic. Specifically, some of my work experiences have been in an outpatient clinic, working with homeless, all school aged children, coordinating a trauma first responders' team, adults and family situations that including grief and loss related challenges. I interact naturally with a friendly and professional style. Honesty and giving my undivided attention in each session is part of who I am as a therapist. Expect that sometimes and sometimes not you may hear what you want to hear in our session. I believe everyone deserves an abundance of respect and not to be judged or treated unfairly. Anyone that wants help, takes the time to seek out help deserves a compassionate, sincere and professionally motivated response. This is something I can do. Utilizing my professional training and experiences couples with my life experiences we can get to the other side with positive outcomes.

I have a natural thinking process that's aligned and targets restructuring thought processes that are harmful. I believe people who desire can little by little adjust the thought patterns that are creating the most challenges in their lives to more positive routines of thought. It's essential to take the necessary journey aimed at improving the quality of your life. Take pride in reaching out the right way for support. Share this portion of your journey with me. I offer the best of my personal life and professional experiences to guide us to the other side or to the healthier thought processing.

Let's start the conversation and move toward improving whatever thought processes that may be getting in your way or holding you back from where or who you want to be. I'm excited to meet you and look forward to our future conversations.

Good job for taking the step to a healthier you!

In the meantime, take care and stay safe.

Ethel Dickerson, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Ethel works

The 5 approaches Ethel lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Ethel lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Ethel'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 Ethel 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”.

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.

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

Ethel 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 Ethel'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 Ethel at this point.

2. Naming Ethel specifically

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

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 Ethel

Built from what Ethel actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Ethel's - Ethel 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.

• “With 22 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

LCSW

Licensed in

Connecticut

Licence

CT LCSW 005954

Licence number

005954

Licence expires

31 Dec 2026

NPI

1649925090

Years in practice

22

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Ethel'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 Ethel. 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.