01 · Who Joel works with

Joel works with stress, Anxiety, addictions and anger management

Joel lists 17 specialisms and 20 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Joel chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Joel's own words

What Joel says about the work

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

I have worked in the field of addiction for the past 20 years. I am a Certified Addiction Professional (CAP) and a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in FL as well as a Substance Abuse Professional (SAP) under the Department of Transportation. I received my Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling in 2011 from Springfield College in Tampa and am currently pursuing a Doctorate in Human Services Administration at NOVA Southeastern University.

I have worked with adults and adolescents with addiction problems and co-existing disorders such as depression, anxiety, and bi-polar disorder to name a few. I am extremely passionate about helping my clients overcome their mental health and addiction problems as well as their behavioral challenges. My goal as a professional is to bring my clients to a point where they can function as a productive member of society, become the best version of themselves, and improve the quality of their lives.

I was the Clinical Manager for Big Bear Behavioral Health in Hillsborough, Sarasota, and Manatee counties, I was also the Clinical Director for two and a half years at at the ACTS Adolescents Residential program, and for the past four years I have been Clinical Director of 7 Summit Pathways Treatment Facility. In addition to working for other established agencies, I have worked with my wife in our own treatment agency for the past eighteen years. Together we run our Transitional Living Program, provide outpatient services for our clients such as individual therapy, and facilitate interventions for families and friends of addicts. We have provided trainings to many professionals in both New York and Florida.

Joel Bergman, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Joel works

The 5 approaches Joel lists, in plain English

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

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

Joel 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 Joel'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 Joel at this point.

2. Naming Joel specifically

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

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 Joel

Built from what Joel actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Joel's - Joel 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 20 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

LMHC

Licensed in

Florida

Licence

FL LMHC MH12063

Licence number

MH12063

Licence expires

31 Mar 2027

NPI

1689943482

Years in practice

20

Gender

Male

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Joel'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 Joel. 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.