- Years in practice
- 10
- Credentials
- LMHC
- Licensed in
- Florida, New York
- Languages
- English
- Focus
- Stress, Anxiety
- Focus
- Addictions
- Focus
- Relationship issues
About David
David Shirly is a licensed mental health counselor with ten years of clinical experience. He focuses on helping people who feel stuck by offering steady, practical support for stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, and parenting concerns. He keeps sessions simple and direct.
Conversations focus on what is happening now and what changes would feel useful. He draws on techniques that teach coping skills and build emotional awareness so people can manage strong feelings and reactions.
Background and approach
In practice he uses client-centered methods to follow each person’s pace. He also uses cognitive behavioral techniques to help identify patterns of thought and behavior that keep problems going. Mindfulness tools are added when gentle grounding or present-moment focus helps reduce distress.
David has worked with people facing relationship struggles, intimacy questions, sleep problems, anger, ADHD-related challenges, and trauma or abuse. He also supports those dealing with substance use, codependency, attachment concerns, and the stresses that come with caregiving and separation. Sessions are offered from Florida and are available in English.
He provides online options including video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. International clients may be seen depending on scheduling and licensing. People who choose him can expect a collaborative plan that emphasizes clear strategies, skill-building, and steady progress toward the goals they name.
What David works with
Everything David lists, in the therapist's own terms. Parenting is the reason this directory exists; the rest shows what else David helps people with.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Relationship issues
- Anger management
- Depression
- Trauma and abuse
- Intimacy-related issues
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Self esteem
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- BDSM, kink, and alternative sex culture
- Body image
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Dependent personality
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- Family problems
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- Hoarding
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Post-traumatic stress
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexual dysfunction
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches David lists
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
Listing an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each therapist names and does not check training records.
Practical therapeutic approaches for online care
Client-centered therapy emphasizes understanding each person's experience without judgment. It focuses on listening, reflecting, and creating a space where people can name what matters and set their own goals. This approach is useful for building trust and clarifying what change looks like for an individual.Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, looks at the links between thoughts, feelings, and actions. It teaches concrete skills to challenge unhelpful thinking and to try different behaviors, which can reduce anxiety, improve mood, and help with sleep and attention challenges. Dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT, adds practical emotion regulation and distress tolerance skills for people who struggle with intense feelings or impulsive behaviors.
Choosing the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with each person to decide which methods fit their goals, needs, and preferences. Plans are adjusted over time based on what is helpful and what isn't, so the process stays flexible and goal-focused.
Online sessions can take place by video, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging, giving options for shorter check-ins or longer deep work. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation, phone sessions can be easier on bandwidth, and messaging suits quick updates or ongoing support between sessions. These formats make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life and to keep momentum across weeks.
Questions people ask about David
What concerns does he help people with?
He works with stress, anxiety, depression, addictions, sleep problems, parenting concerns, and intimacy-related or relationship issues.
What is his therapeutic style like?
Sessions are collaborative and practical, using client-centered listening alongside skill-based techniques to manage thoughts and emotions.
How much clinical experience does he have?
He has ten years of experience working with a range of emotional and behavioral concerns.
What credentials and where is he licensed?
He is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, credentialed as NY LMHC and FL LMHC, and practices from Florida.
Which languages are sessions offered in?
Sessions are offered in English for both local and international clients.
What session formats are available?
He offers video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to fit different schedules and needs.
How does payment and cost work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability and sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with him?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule according to the therapist's availability.
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