Katherine Kaufmann, LCSW

Katherine Kaufmann is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) based in Maine with more than 10 years of professional experience supporting adolescents. She currently works full-time in a middle school setting, where she focuses on helping teens navigate common and complex challenges such as stress, anxiety, family conflict, trauma and abuse, relationship concerns, self-harm, and questions around gender identity exploration.

Katherine approaches her work by creating a respectful, supportive environment in which young people feel heard and valued. She views each teen as the expert of their own story and looks for strengths that can be built on to support growth and recovery. Her role is to walk alongside adolescents and their families to uncover those strengths, introduce practical skills, and help move toward a more balanced and fulfilling life.

Recognizing that reaching out for help takes courage, Katherine aims to empower adolescents and caregivers through collaborative care and steady support. Her experience in a school setting informs a practical, developmentally attuned approach that centers the young person while coordinating with families and systems as needed.

Evidence-Based Approaches and Online Care

Katherine draws on evidence-based techniques that are tailored to the needs of adolescents and their families. One common approach focuses on building practical coping skills - teaching tools for managing stress, anxiety, and strong emotions through step-by-step strategies that can be used at school and home. This approach helps teens gain immediate skills for regulation and problem solving.

Another emphasis is trauma-informed work, which helps young people process difficult or painful experiences at a pace that feels manageable. This kind of work supports safer engagement with painful memories and responses while strengthening resilience and self-understanding.

Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. Katherine works with each teen and their caregivers to identify goals, try different methods, and adjust the plan based on what fits the young person’s needs and preferences. Therapists and licensed professionals are part of that decision-making process, guiding change while honoring the teen's perspective.

Online therapy options - including video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging - make it easier to fit care into busy school and family schedules. These formats offer flexibility for ongoing work, regular check-ins, and timely support when challenges arise, while maintaining the therapeutic focus that supports growth.