Deborah 'Rachel' Friedman, LISW

Deborah 'Rachel' Friedman is an Ohio-licensed social worker with more than 32 years of professional experience. She supports people facing stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, grief and loss, depression, and LGBT-related concerns. Rachel emphasizes each person's strengths and works alongside them as they take steps toward change.

Rachel treats people as the experts on their own stories. She uses clear, practical conversation to help clients sort priorities and find manageable next steps. Sessions focus on real-life problems like panic, isolation, family tensions, and midlife transitions. Rachel aims to make the work feel doable rather than overwhelming.

Her approach blends client-centered listening with practical tools. She draws on cognitive behavioral and mindfulness techniques to help people notice thought patterns and try new responses. Solution-focused ideas shape short-term goals, while trauma-focused methods support recovery from painful events.

Rachel also works outside therapy as a pet and service dog trainer, including a sub-specialty with psychiatric service dogs. That hands-on experience informs her practical problem-solving and attention to everyday routines.

People commonly come for help with control issues, guilt and shame, hospice and end-of-life concerns, and rebuilding self-worth. Rachel encourages small experiments between sessions and checks progress together. She aims to help clients find clearer choices and more calm in daily life.

How therapy approaches fit into online care

Rachel often uses Client-Centered Therapy, which means she starts by listening and following the person's pace and priorities. This approach helps when someone needs space to tell their story and name what matters most. She also uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which focuses on noticing unhelpful thoughts and trying out new ways of thinking and acting to reduce anxiety and mood problems.

Finding the right approach is collaborative. Rachel will work with each person to match methods to their goals, needs, and daily routine. That may mean emphasizing mindfulness skills for stress, CBT tools for panic, or trauma-focused work when past events are part of the problem. She checks in and adjusts the plan as progress is made.

Confirm current online session options before booking, since formats are not specified in the biography. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into busy lives, cut travel time, and allow brief check-ins when a full session isn't needed. It also lets people use mindfulness or CBT exercises at home between meetings. Licensed professionals, including therapists, can adapt these tools to work over distance while focusing on practical changes that matter day to day.