- Years in practice
- 12
- Credentials
- LPC
- Licensed in
- Missouri, Texas
- Languages
- English
- Focus
- Stress, Anxiety
- Focus
- Addictions
- Focus
- Relationship issues
About Mary
Mary Shands is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with 12 years of clinical experience. She holds licenses in Missouri and Texas and has worked across schools, treatment centers, and community settings. Mary approaches sessions with warmth, energy, and careful listening.
Her background includes school-based counseling, substance abuse treatment, and work with veterans and people in sexual offender treatment programs. She has helped people facing trauma, depression, anxiety, addiction, and parenting concerns.
Background and approach
She has also supported those navigating adoption-related separation and emotional abuse. Mary draws on several practical approaches in sessions. She uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to link thoughts and behavior, and client-centered methods to make room for a person’s own goals.
She also uses mindfulness and solution-focused strategies to build short-term coping and clearer next steps. People often come for help with stress, relationship strain, grief, sleep or eating difficulties, and career-related pressure. Mary also has experience with compassion fatigue, first responder issues, and challenges tied to major life changes.
Her work includes attention to identity and LGBT concerns. Sessions are conversational and goal-oriented. Mary listens first, then helps set realistic steps to try between meetings.
She offers training and presentations in addition to direct counseling. Mary provides services from Texas and accepts international clients for remote work. She conducts sessions in English and adapts tools to each person’s situation.
What Mary works with
Everything Mary lists, in the therapist's own terms. Parenting is the reason this directory exists; the rest shows what else Mary helps people with.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Depression
- LGBT
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Eating disorders
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Coping with life changes
- Coaching
- Compassion fatigue
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Adoption and foster care
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Avoidant personality
- Body image
- Cancer
- Codependency
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- HIV / AIDS
- Hoarding
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Immigration issues
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intellectual disability
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Personality disorders
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Traumatic brain injury
- Women's issues
Approaches Mary lists
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Existential Therapy
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative 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.
How Mary’s approaches translate to online therapy
Mary commonly uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people notice unhelpful thoughts and try different behaviors, which works well in online sessions through structured exercises and homework. She also uses client-centered approaches that prioritize the person’s goals and pacing, offering a supportive space where the therapist listens and follows the client’s lead. Emotionally-Focused Therapy helps people name and work with deeper emotions and relational patterns when that is needed.Choosing an approach is collaborative. Mary will discuss goals, try methods, and adjust based on what feels useful. She encourages feedback and revisits technique choices as needs change to find the best fit for each person.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video calls allow for face-to-face conversation and visual cues. Phone sessions can fit a busy schedule or require less bandwidth. Live chat and texting are useful for quick check-ins, short skill practice, or when someone prefers written reflection. These options make it easier to connect around work, parenting, or travel constraints while keeping focus on practical steps and emotional support.
Questions people ask about Mary
What kinds of concerns does Mary help with?
She helps people with stress, anxiety, depression, addictions, trauma, grief, parenting issues, relationship strain, sleep and eating difficulties, and many other life challenges.
How would you describe her therapy style?
Sessions are conversational and person-focused, combining client-centered listening with practical techniques like cognitive behavioral and mindfulness strategies.
What is Mary’s professional background?
Mary has 12 years of experience working in school districts, substance abuse programs, veteran services, insurance settings, and sexual offender treatment contexts.
Where is Mary licensed and based?
She is a Licensed Professional Counselor with licenses in Missouri and Texas and practices from Texas.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English and international clients are accepted for remote care.
What session formats are available?
Sessions can be conducted by video call, phone session, live chat, or text-based messaging depending on preference.
How are sessions paid for and what do they cost?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions are delivered through a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with Mary?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule sessions according to therapist availability.
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