Dawn Dougherty, LCSW

Dawn Dougherty is a licensed clinical social worker with 30 years of experience helping people manage stress, anxiety, depression, grief, and relationship challenges. She creates an affirming space where people can talk about work pressure, identity questions, trauma, and the strain of caregiving. Dawn centers each conversation on the person in front of her and their immediate concerns.

Her style is warm and down-to-earth. Sessions focus on practical steps people can try between meetings and on noticing what gets in the way of change. Dawn blends a person-centered stance with tools from cognitive behavioral approaches and mindfulness to support emotion regulation and clearer thinking.

Dawn also uses skills from dialectical behavior therapy and motivational interviewing to help people manage strong emotions and find the motivation to make changes. She brings a background as a yoga and meditation instructor into the work when clients want body-based strategies for stress and grounding.

Over her career she has worked with a broad range of life situations including parenting strain, career transitions, blended family issues, adoption and foster care concerns, aging and caregiver stress. She also supports people dealing with abandonment, attachment concerns, codependency, domestic violence aftermath, and complex grief.

Based in California, Dawn holds an LCSW credential. She offers therapy in English and does not accept international clients. To begin, clients complete a short matching questionnaire and schedule sessions according to her availability.