LaVerne Merritt-Morrison, LMHC

LaVerne Merritt-Morrison is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) practicing in New York with three decades of clinical experience. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Human Services/Counseling and completed a master’s degree in clinical counseling with a major in Addiction Counseling from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Her background includes decades of work with substance use concerns and people managing multiple diagnoses.

LaVerne takes a straightforward, person-focused approach in sessions. She centers conversations on each client's goals and uses plain language to talk through problems. She combines motivational interviewing with cognitive behavioral techniques while keeping the client's experience and perspective central.

Her clinical history includes long experience in substance use therapy and a focus on dual diagnosis. She also has experience supporting people in transitional housing and has training related to compulsive gambling and addiction counseling. Those experiences inform how she addresses addictions, codependency, and related challenges.

Clients who bring issues such as anxiety, depression, stress, relationship and intimacy concerns, parenting strain, career questions, or midlife transitions will find practical strategies and honest conversation. She also addresses trauma, attachment concerns, compulsive behaviors, and features of personality disorders in care.

Sessions tend to be collaborative and goal-oriented. LaVerne works to help people recognize patterns, set small achievable steps, and build on successes. She emphasizes empathy and clear feedback while helping clients develop skills to manage cravings, reduce anxiety, and navigate life changes.

How her approaches translate to online therapy

LaVerne uses client-centered therapy to place each person's needs and goals at the center of sessions. That means the conversation follows what matters most to the client and the therapist adapts to where the person is in the moment.

She also uses motivational interviewing to help people find their own reasons for change. This method focuses on building motivation and making manageable steps toward new behaviors. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, is used to identify and change unhelpful thinking and behavior patterns that feed anxiety, depression, or addictive urges.

Finding the right approach is part of the work together. She will collaborate with each client to decide whether motivational interviewing, CBT, a client-centered stance, or a blend makes the most sense based on goals, preferences, and what’s most helpful in session.

The biography does not list specific online formats, so confirm current session options before booking. In general, online work can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy day, allow shorter check-ins when needed, and reduce travel time. It can also allow people to keep regular appointments while managing work or caregiving schedules.