About Deborah
Deborah Gleason welcomes people who are feeling overwhelmed, uncertain, or worn thin by life’s demands. She offers calm, steady support for anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship strain, identity questions, and other struggles that make daily life harder. Deborah introduces simple, practical steps so people can begin to feel more grounded and find clearer direction.
Deborah is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) in Alabama and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Illinois with nine years of experience.
How Deborah works
She encourages people to notice bodily sensations as part of understanding their emotions. Sessions may include talking, breath work, grounding exercises, and mindfulness to help regulate the nervous system. Her manner is warm, collaborative, and nonjudgmental.
She helps people identify unhelpful patterns and build practical tools for coping. The work can involve exploring beliefs, trying small behavioral changes, and practicing skills between sessions. Deborah has worked with concerns such as anxiety, trauma and abuse, relationship and intimacy issues, LGBTQ matters, grief, addiction, parenting stress, sleep and eating difficulties, and coping with life changes.
She also notes experience supporting adolescents in group home settings with emotional awareness and self-worth. People who value a mix of conversation, mindfulness, and attention to bodily experience may find her approach helpful. Sessions are offered in English and Deborah accepts international clients.
To begin, complete the matching questionnaire and schedule according to availability.
Deborah lists 10 ways of working on the entry:
What Deborah works with
The areas below are the ones Deborah selected when setting up a profile. The first few are listed as the main focus; the rest are also named.
- Stress, Anxiety
- LGBT
- Relationship issues
Also listed
- Abandonment
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Adoption and foster care
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Anger management
- Antisocial personality
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- Avoidant personality
- Bipolar disorder
- Body image
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Codependency
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Dependent personality
- Depression
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating disorders
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- HIV / AIDS
- Hoarding
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Impulsivity
- Intellectual disability
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Mood disorders
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Self-love
- Sexuality
- Sleeping disorders
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Trauma and abuse
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Training and background
| Registers | LICSW, LCSW |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 9 |
| Languages | English |
| Session format | Online: video, phone, live chat or messaging |
| Country | Alabama |
Memberships and registers are shown as supplied; they are not licences, and this directory does not verify them.
Online support options
Approaches that combine mind and embodied awareness
Deborah uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, which helps people notice painful thoughts without getting stuck and focus on values-based actions that matter to them. She also draws on Client-Centered Therapy, offering a compassionate, nonjudgmental space where the client's perspective guides the work. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is part of her practice too, providing concrete strategies to change unhelpful thinking and behavior patterns that contribute to anxiety or low mood.Finding the right approach is part of the work. Deborah collaborates with each person to see which methods fit their needs, goals, and preferences. She adjusts strategies over time so the plan stays practical and relevant to everyday challenges.
Confirm current session options before booking, as the original biography does not specify formats. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy schedule, reduce travel time, and offer quicker check-ins when life is hectic. Some people find phone or video sessions helpful for shorter check-ins, while others prefer a fuller session to practice skills and reflection. Deborah will discuss how to structure sessions so they work with a client's daily life and responsibilities.
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Common questions
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A practical next step
Write down two things you would want to be different in six months. That is the most useful thing to bring to a first session, whoever it is with. If you would rather start now than keep reading, online sessions are the quickest route.
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