Barbara Defazzio, LMHC

Barbara Defazzio is a Florida-licensed LMHC (Licensed Mental Health Counselor) with 40 years of professional experience supporting individuals and families through complex life challenges. She carried a private practice in Massachusetts for more than two decades with a focus on treating sexual abuse and the resulting trauma, including extensive work with post-traumatic stress related to abuse.

After relocating to Florida, she continued specializing in both sexual and physical trauma and has significant experience working with people who spent time in the foster care system as children. Her work also includes post-adoption support, helping families navigate the common challenges of integrating a newly adopted child into the household.

Across her practice, she assists clients with stress and anxiety, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, and coping with loss. Her training and long-term clinical work inform a thoughtful, trauma-aware approach that aims to meet each person where they are. She recognizes that beginning therapy takes courage and she works collaboratively with clients to take that first step and build a path forward.

Trauma-informed approaches and online care

Barbara Defazzio integrates client-centered therapy and trauma-focused therapy alongside cognitive behavioral strategies to support people coping with abuse, PTSD, grief, and family transitions. Client-centered therapy emphasizes a respectful, nonjudgmental stance that helps clients explore their thoughts and feelings at their own pace and build self-directed growth. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) offers practical tools to identify and change unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviors, which can reduce anxiety and improve coping. Trauma-focused therapy concentrates on processing traumatic experiences and reducing the ways those memories interfere with daily life, often supporting recovery from sexual and physical abuse.

Finding the right approach is part of the therapeutic process, and she works collaboratively with each person to determine which methods best match their needs, goals, and preferences. This collaborative process helps tailor sessions to what will be most helpful for the individual or family.

Online therapy options include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging, which make scheduling more flexible and allow therapy to fit into varied routines. These formats can increase access to licensed professionals and make ongoing support more convenient for people managing busy lives, caregiving roles, or geographic distance.