01 · Who Kathleen works with

Kathleen works with stress, Anxiety, relationship issues and trauma and abuse

Kathleen lists 13 specialisms and 26 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Kathleen chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Kathleen's own words

What Kathleen says about the work

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

Hi! I have been in various work places as a Social Worker for 40 years and I retired, but wish to do this part time. Firstly, I realize it can be scary reaching out to a counselor if one has not done so. It is important that people feel safe and listened to as they share their life experiences. I love meeting people and assisting with the concerns they bring to the table. My style of work is overall eclectic but I mainly use Cognitive/ Behavioral techniques and Reality Therapy. I throw in many other techniques as needed. I was recently trained in Cognitive Processing Therapy, which is the treatment of choice for PTSD. I have worked with children in a school setting, adolescents in college, and adults; severely mentally ill to people with adjustment difficulties. It is important not to minimize your own concerns. If you are researching this site, there is probably something you need. Please reach out. I have experience with sexual and other abuses, suicidality, grief and loss, relationships, depression and anxiety and many other concerns. I have experience with Selective Mutism as well, which is not very well known. I really would like to work with people in a video/zoom/ type of manner as I believe it is important to be able to see each other. I certainly would be available to text and phone as well, but prefer face to face. I so look forward to meeting whomever comes my way. Thank you. - Kathy

Kathleen Cooley, on the BetterHelp listing · read 7 Oct 2026

03 · How Kathleen works

The 5 approaches Kathleen lists, in plain English

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

Attachment-Based Therapy

Reads present-day relationship difficulty through the lens of how safety and closeness were learned early on. The therapeutic relationship itself is treated as part of the work, because it is where the pattern tends to show up first.

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.

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

Kathleen 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 Kathleen'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 Kathleen at this point.

2. Naming Kathleen specifically

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

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 Kathleen

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

• “You list both Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Attachment-Based 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 40 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

LMSW

Licensed in

Michigan

Licence

MI LMSW 6801033979

Licence number

6801033979

Licence expires

10 Feb 2028

NPI

1215554696

Years in practice

40

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Kathleen'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 7 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 Kathleen. 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.