Practitioner record · Checked 8 Nov 2026

Kimberly Smith has been in practice 16 years and is licensed in Alabama. Kimberly lists stress, Anxiety, addictions and relationship issues among 32 subjects on the BetterHelp roster.

Everything below is either quoted from Kimberly's own BetterHelp listing, taken from public licensing records, or written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such. Nothing here is an availability promise, a review, or a rating.

16years in practice
32subjects listed
8approaches listed

01 · Who Kimberly works with

Kimberly works with stress, Anxiety, addictions and relationship issues

Kimberly lists 13 specialisms and 19 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Kimberly chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

Specialisms
  • Stress, Anxiety
  • Addictions
  • Relationship issues
  • Depression
  • Coping with life changes
  • Family conflicts
  • Trauma and abuse
  • Grief
  • Parenting issues
  • Anger management
  • Self esteem
  • Career difficulties
  • Bipolar disorder
Also experienced with
  • Abandonment
  • Chronic pain, illness, and disability
  • Codependency
  • Communication problems
  • Control issues
  • Forgiveness
  • Guilt and shame
  • Impulsivity
  • Isolation / loneliness
  • Life purpose
  • Mood disorders
  • Panic disorder and panic attacks
  • Post-traumatic stress
  • Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
  • Self-love
  • Social anxiety and phobia
  • Women's issues
  • Workplace issues
  • Young adult issues

02 · In Kimberly's own words

What Kimberly says about the work

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

I am a Professional Counselor licensed in Alabama with a wide range of professional work experience that has expanded over the last 14 years. My professional journey has given me many unique opportunities to serve in various capacities to include rehabilitation counseling, mental health and substance abuse. I have experience in helping clients with borderline intellectual functioning, substance abuse, schizophrenia, schizoaffective, bipolar, depression and co-occurring disorders. I also have experience in providing insight to stress management techniques, effective coping strategies to manage anxiety, addiction, trauma, parenting issues and complicated grief. Although, my career has lead me on many different paths, my focus has remained the same. Assisting clients I serve in “Moving Forward”. “Moving forward to hope”. “Moving forward to dream”. “Moving forward to live a life you may not have thought was possible otherwise”.

At this moment, you may feel stuck or powerless in the circumstances that lead you to seek out counseling services. However, if given the opportunity it would be an honor to assist you in clearing the path ahead! My approaches to do so include but are not limited to: person centered, cognitive behavioral and solution-focused counseling.

I believe our life experiences shape our emotional lives and how we perceive our realities. As a result, I believe in treating everyone with respect, sensitivity, and compassion. I will tailor our dialog and treatment plan to meet your unique and specific needs. It takes courage to seek out a more fulfilling and happier life and to take the first steps towards a change. I am here to support & empower you in that journey.

I look forward to assisting you in Moving Forward!

Kimberly Smith, on the BetterHelp listing · read 8 Nov 2026

03 · How Kimberly works

The 8 approaches Kimberly lists, in plain English

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

Acceptance and Commitment TherapyACT
Rather than trying to argue a painful thought away, ACT works on loosening its grip and getting on with what matters to you anyway. Sessions spend real time naming your values, then building action around them while difficult feelings are still present.
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.
Dialectical Behaviour TherapyDBT
A structured skills-led adaptation of CBT built around holding two things at once: accepting yourself as you are and working to change. Teaches concrete skills for distress tolerance, emotion regulation and relationships. Developed for people whose feelings arrive at overwhelming intensity, and strongest-evidenced there.
Emotionally Focused TherapyEFT
Built for couples and rooted in attachment: the recurring argument is treated as a cycle two people are stuck in rather than as one person's fault. Sessions work to interrupt the cycle and get to what each person is actually asking for underneath it.
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.
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.

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Kimberly 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 Kimberly'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 Kimberly at this point.

  2. Naming Kimberly specifically

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

  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 Kimberly

Built from what Kimberly actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Kimberly's - Kimberly 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 16 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
LPC
Licensed in
Alabama
Licence
AL LPC 4056
Licence number
4056
Licence expires
31 Jul 2027
NPI
1699235440
Years in practice
16
Gender
Female
Languages
English
International clients
Accepted
Listed since
15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Kimberly'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 8 Nov 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 Kimberly. 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.

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