- Years in practice
- 18
- Credentials
- LMFT
- Licensed in
- California
- Languages
- English
- Focus
- Relationship issues
- Focus
- Family conflicts
- Focus
- Trauma and abuse
About Darlene
Dr. Darlene Viggiano is a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) who helps people navigate parenting challenges, relationship strain, anxiety, grief, trauma, addiction, and life transitions. She communicates plainly and aims to make therapy practical for everyday problems.
Sessions focus on real behaviors, emotions, and steps parents can try between meetings. Dr. Viggiano draws on attachment-based ideas to look at how relationships shape behavior.
She uses client-centered methods to keep the conversation focused on each person’s experience.
Background and approach
Cognitive behavioral techniques are used to spot unhelpful thinking and try small experiments to change it. Her background spans clinical roles in intensive outpatient settings, case management, and supervisory positions. She has worked with people facing abuse, addiction, infidelity, and perinatal substance concerns.
That experience informs how she structures safety, boundaries, and practical coping strategies in sessions. She completed a Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology and has practiced since the late 1990s, bringing about 18 years of recent clinical experience to her work. She has also presented workshops on Jungian and transpersonal topics and written materials for people processing loss.
In sessions she pays attention to communication patterns, attachment concerns, and concrete skills like anger regulation and sleep routines. The aim is to help parents and individuals build clearer boundaries, reduce conflict, and find workable routines that fit family life.
What Darlene works with
Everything Darlene lists, in the therapist's own terms. Parenting is the reason this directory exists; the rest shows what else Darlene helps people with.
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Depression
- Coping with life changes
- Compassion fatigue
- ADHD
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Family of origin issues
- Infidelity
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Multicultural concerns
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Post-traumatic stress
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Sex addiction
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Women's issues
Approaches Darlene lists
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Existential Therapy
- Gottman Method
- Hypnotherapy
- Imago Relationship Therapy
- Jungian Therapy
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Somatic Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
- Internal Family Systems
Listing an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each therapist names and does not check training records.
How attachment, client-centered, and CBT work online
Attachment-based work looks at how early and current relationships affect how people respond to stress and parenting. Online sessions can help identify those patterns and practice new ways of relating to partners and children.Client-centered therapy focuses on listening and following what matters most to the person. In this approach the therapist reflects concerns, validates experience, and helps clients find their own solutions rather than imposing answers.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) targets unhelpful thoughts and behaviors with simple, practical exercises. Online CBT often includes brief skills coaching, homework, and tracking between sessions to make change feel doable in daily life.
Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences, and practical needs, and then recommend one or a blend of methods to try. Clients often adjust the plan as they learn what helps.
Online therapy offers flexibility for busy parents and people with tight schedules. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation; phone sessions can be used when bandwidth is limited; live chat and text messaging work well for short check-ins, coaching, or when writing out thoughts is easier. These options make it simpler to fit therapy into work, school, or family routines.
Questions people ask about Darlene
What kinds of concerns does this therapist address?
She works with parenting challenges, relationship issues, trauma and abuse, grief, addiction, anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and related concerns listed in her specialties.
How would you describe her therapeutic style?
She takes a practical, straightforward approach that blends attachment-informed thinking with client-centered listening and cognitive-behavioral techniques to try concrete changes.
What is her clinical background?
She earned a PhD in Psychology, has experience in intensive outpatient care, case management, and supervision, and brings roughly 18 years of clinical practice to her work.
Where is she licensed and based?
She holds a California license as an LMFT and practices from California.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
What session formats does she offer?
She provides video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging for online work.
How do fees and billing work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
What are the steps to begin therapy?
To start, select the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule sessions according to therapist availability.
More therapists for parents in California
All in California
Moushumi Ghose
LMFT
California 23 years in practice
Intimacy and relationship-focused therapy
- LGBT
- Relationship
- Intimacy-related issues
Jeana De Lay
LMFT
California 17 years in practice
Practical therapy and parenting support
- Self esteem
- Career
- Stress, Anxiety
Yanina Lambert
LMFT
California 20 years in practice English, Spanish
Supportive therapist for parenting and relationships
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship
- Trauma and abuse