01 · Who Robert works with

Robert works with stress, Anxiety, anger management and depression

Robert lists 17 specialisms and 35 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Robert chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Robert's own words

What Robert says about the work

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

ABOUT ME Hello! I am Robert Peterson, MSW, LICSW. I am a licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker living in the state of Washington. For most of my career, I have worked in international settings with children and adolescents where cultural displacement/adjustment/shock, dislocation from family and friends, isolation and stress are common challenges. The skills I have developed are applicable to youth experiencing trauma, divorce, death of a parent or any other crisis that taxes normal scoping skills. In addition helping children and adolescents adjust to new situations and expectations through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Solution Focused Therapy, I work to develop Resilience; the ability to adapt to difficult situations through cognitive restructuring and skill building.

SPECIALTIES Cultural Adaptation Interpersonal Relationships Stress Management Conflict Resolution Personal Growth Depression and Anxiety Panic Attacks Parenting and Family Issues Trauma Diversity Family & relationship problems Academic problems

Also experienced in: ADHD , Academic Issues, Career Planning, College Admissions. Social Adjustment

Clinical approaches: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Motivational Interviewing, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy, Crisis Planning and Management.

Robert Peterson, on the BetterHelp listing · read 7 Oct 2026

03 · How Robert works

The 5 approaches Robert lists, in plain English

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

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.

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.

Also listed

• Existential Therapy

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Robert 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 Robert'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 Robert at this point.

2. Naming Robert specifically

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

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 Robert

Built from what Robert actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Robert's - Robert 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 30 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

LICSW

Licensed in

Washington

Licence

WA LICSW LW60174553

Licence number

LW60174553

Licence expires

11 Mar 2027

NPI

1922336684

Years in practice

30

Gender

Male

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Robert'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 Robert. 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.