- Years in practice
- 12
- Credentials
- LCSW
- Licensed in
- Wisconsin
- Languages
- English
- Focus
- Stress, Anxiety
- Focus
- Grief
- Focus
- Self esteem
About Donna
Donna Altepeter is a licensed clinical social worker who focuses on practical help for parents and adults coping with stress, anxiety, grief, and major life changes. She speaks plainly and aims to make conversations useful and manageable. She believes people can change and prefers a collaborative style that treats clients as partners in their own growth.
Donna draws on more than a decade of practice as an LCSW and many earlier years working in community mental health and teaching social work.
Background and approach
Her background includes helping people facing life-threatening illness, bereavement, and caregiving strains. She also supports those wrestling with mood concerns, self-esteem, addiction issues, and relationship or intimacy questions. In sessions she combines client-centered listening with tools from cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness to address thoughts, emotions, and daily routines.
She uses motivational interviewing and narrative approaches when exploring motivation and the stories people tell about their lives. The result is a hands-on, step-by-step way to try new coping strategies between meetings. Donna’s work often centers on parenting challenges, sleep problems, anger, career transitions, and caregiver stress for people dealing with aging or serious illness.
She also helps with forgiveness, guilt, codependency, and isolation. She frames therapy as a collaborative learning process where both client and therapist bring knowledge to the work. Clients can expect clear goals, practical exercises, and gentle reflection.
Donna values teaching and learning in equal measure and aims to help people find next steps that fit their everyday life.
What Donna works with
Everything Donna lists, in the therapist's own terms. Parenting is the reason this directory exists; the rest shows what else Donna helps people with.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Grief
- Self esteem
- Depression
- Compassion fatigue
- Addictions
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Trauma and abuse
- Intimacy-related issues
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Career difficulties
- Coping with life changes
- Coaching
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Attachment issues
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Codependency
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Divorce and separation
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Life purpose
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-love
- Women's issues
Approaches Donna lists
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative Therapy
- Psychodynamic 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.
Approaches that guide online parenting and life work
Donna uses client-centered therapy to build a respectful, listening-first relationship where the client's priorities lead the work. This approach helps parents and adults identify what matters most and shape goals that fit their real life.She also uses cognitive behavioral therapy, a practical method that connects thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. CBT helps people change unhelpful thinking patterns and try different routines for sleep, stress, or mood. Mindfulness therapy is another tool she offers to help people notice difficult feelings without getting overwhelmed and to practice small calming exercises in the moment.
Choosing the right approach is part of the work together. Donna treats it as a collaborative process, checking in about what helps and adjusting strategies based on a person's goals, preferences, and daily demands. She blends listening, short teaching moments, and homework that fit each person's situation.
Online sessions are offered by video calls, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging to give practical flexibility. Video is useful for face-to-face conversation and teaching skills, phone works well when bandwidth is limited, live chat fits quick check-ins, and messaging lets people share updates between sessions. These options make it easier to schedule therapy around childcare, work, and caregiving responsibilities.
Questions people ask about Donna
What concerns does Donna help address?
She supports people dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, grief, parenting challenges, caregiver strain, addictions, relationship and intimacy issues, sleep problems, anger, career changes, and related life transitions.
What is her therapeutic style like?
Her style is client-centered and collaborative, combining listening with practical tools. She blends cognitive behavioral work, mindfulness, motivational interviewing, and narrative ideas to help people try new thoughts and habits.
How much experience does she have?
Donna has 12 years of documented experience as an LCSW and many prior years in community mental health and teaching social work at the university level.
What credentials and region are listed?
She holds the LCSW credential and is listed as WI LCSW practicing in Wisconsin.
Are sessions offered in other languages or internationally?
Sessions are offered in English. She is not currently accepting international clients.
Which session formats are available?
Sessions can take place by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to fit different schedules and preferences.
How does cost and billing work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability. Sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin therapy with her?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, fill out a short matching questionnaire, and schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.
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Angela Raymond
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