- Years in practice
- 30
- Credentials
- LMHC
- Licensed in
- Florida
- Languages
- English
- Focus
- Stress, Anxiety
- Focus
- Addictions
- Focus
- LGBT
About Valerie
Valerie Johnson-Cardoso is a licensed mental health counselor who brings 30 years of experience to help parents and caregivers navigate stressful times. She focuses on practical steps to ease anxiety, manage parenting challenges, and handle life changes. Valerie writes in plain terms and aims to build trust so people can talk without judgment.
She spent many years teaching students with learning differences, autism, and emotional needs. Valerie also worked in residential mental health and residential substance abuse settings.
Background and approach
That mix of classroom, home, and agency work shaped a down-to-earth style that values common-sense skills. In sessions she listens first, then helps people try manageable changes. She uses approaches that include Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Client-Centered methods.
Conversations often focus on spotting critical self-talk, improving coping skills, and making small, steady shifts in behavior. Her background includes work with grief, trauma and abuse, addictions, LGBT concerns, parenting stress, and attention differences. She also supports people facing eating concerns, intimacy questions, career strain, and compassion fatigue.
Valerie brings experience with both long-term and situational problems. Clients can expect a collaborative process where goals are set together. Valerie emphasizes learning tools that fit daily life and building a calmer routine.
The aim is steady progress rather than quick fixes. Valerie practices in Florida and offers services that can work alongside other supports, including faith transition issues and religious trauma concerns. She welcomes straightforward conversations about what will help most and how to start making changes.
What Valerie works with
Everything Valerie lists, in the therapist's own terms. Parenting is the reason this directory exists; the rest shows what else Valerie helps people with.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- LGBT
- Relationship issues
- Depression
- Family conflicts
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Eating disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Coping with life changes
- Compassion fatigue
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Antisocial personality
- Attachment issues
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- BDSM, kink, and alternative sex culture
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- HIV / AIDS
- Hoarding
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intellectual disability
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexuality
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Traumatic brain injury
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches Valerie lists
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Existential Therapy
- Hypnotherapy
- Imago Relationship Therapy
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative Therapy
- Solution-Focused 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.
Online approaches that fit real life
Valerie draws on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people who juggle parenting, work, and personal stress. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy encourages noticing difficult thoughts without getting stuck in them and focusing on values-based actions to move forward. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps identify unhelpful thought patterns and tests new behaviors to reduce anxiety or mood symptoms.Choosing an approach is a team effort. Valerie will talk with each person about goals, day-to-day routines, and what feels most doable. Together they decide whether to emphasize acceptance skills, thought-behavior experiments, or a mix tailored to parenting needs and life demands.
Online sessions use video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to fit busy schedules. Video works well for face-to-face conversation and teaching practical exercises. Phone sessions can be a good option when bandwidth is limited or a quick check-in is needed. Text and chat let people share updates between sessions and keep momentum with brief messages or worksheets.
Questions people ask about Valerie
What kinds of concerns does Valerie help with?
She works with stress, anxiety, depression, parenting challenges, addictions, trauma and abuse, grief, and related issues like self-esteem and career strain.
How would you describe her therapy style?
Her approach is straightforward and collaborative. She listens first, then suggests practical changes and skills to try between sessions.
What is her professional background?
Valerie has 30 years of experience as a mental health counselor and spent 16 years teaching students with learning differences and autism, plus work in residential mental health and substance abuse settings.
What credentials and location does she hold?
She is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) practicing in Florida.
Which languages are supported and are international clients accepted?
Sessions are offered in English, and she accepts international clients.
What session formats are available?
She offers video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to fit different schedules and needs.
How does pricing work for sessions?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule sessions according to therapist availability.
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