- Emotionally-Focused Therapy
- CBT and DBT skills
- Mindfulness practice
About Claudia
Claudia Richards is a LICSW practicing in the District of Columbia with 30 years of clinical experience. She helps people handle stress, anxiety, depression, relationship struggles, self-esteem concerns, and life changes. She also supports people facing addictions, grief, parenting challenges, and career strain.
Claudia uses Emotionally-Focused Therapy as part of her work, alongside Client-Centered approaches, CBT, DBT, and mindfulness-based techniques. In sessions she listens for emotional patterns and helps clients put words to feelings that are hard to name. She pairs emotion-focused exploration with practical skills for coping and behavior change.
Her background includes a wide range of focus areas such as attachment issues, abandonment, adoption and foster care concerns, blended family issues, codependency, and communication problems. She also addresses issues like infidelity, divorce and separation, drug and alcohol addiction, and first responder stress.
Claudia brings attention to identity-related concerns, including LGBT-related stress and HIV/AIDS issues, and she works with people facing compassion fatigue and ADHD-related challenges. Her work often combines discussion of emotions with concrete strategies for daily life.
People can expect a steady, task-oriented approach that balances emotional exploration with skills practice. To begin, prospective clients are asked to use the directory’s matching process and schedule a first session through the listed pathway.
How Emotion-Focused and Skills-Based Work Translate Online
Claudia uses Emotionally-Focused Therapy to help people identify core emotions and the patterns those feelings create in relationships and daily life. EFT in this context focuses on naming emotions, tracking how they show up, and using new ways of responding to feelings that have felt overwhelming.She also draws on Client-Centered Therapy, which emphasizes listening and following the client’s pace, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which targets thought and behavior patterns with concrete exercises. CBT techniques help with anxiety, low mood, and coping skills, while client-centered methods support the person’s own problem-solving and expression.
Finding the right approach is part of the work. Claudia will collaborate with clients to choose which methods fit their goals and preferences. That means pairing emotional exploration with skill practice when useful, and adjusting focus as needs change.
Session formats are not specified in the biography, so confirm current online options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy schedule, allow shorter check-in appointments when needed, and remove travel time. Licensed professionals can adapt EFT and CBT exercises to video or phone formats, and Claudia will discuss what works best for scheduling and the client’s day-to-day life.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
30+ years
Listed in
District of Columbia
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of problems does she help with?
She works with stress, anxiety, depression, relationship difficulties, self-esteem issues, grief, parenting concerns, and addictions among other challenges.
What therapy styles does she use?
Her approach includes Emotionally-Focused Therapy, Client-Centered Therapy, cognitive behavioral techniques, dialectical behavior strategies, and mindfulness practices.
How much clinical experience does she have?
Claudia has 30 years of experience working in clinical settings and community practice in the District of Columbia.
What are her credentials and where does she practice?
She holds the LICSW credential and practices in the District of Columbia.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can I work with her from outside the United States?
She is not accepting international clients at this time.
How are sessions paid for and what does it cost?
Cost varies with location; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I get started with scheduling?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Profile details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. Credential and registration rules differ between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.