Susan Ryder, LCPC

Susan Ryder is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) based in Maine with 17 years of clinical experience supporting people through a wide range of life challenges. She works with stress and anxiety, motivation and self-esteem concerns, depression, and the practical demands of coping with life changes. Her practice also addresses compassion fatigue, addictions and process addictions, relationship and family issues, grief and hospice or end-of-life counseling, intimacy and parenting concerns, anger, ADHD, and many related areas across the lifespan.

Drawing on a variety of approaches, she helps clients navigate infidelity, blended family dynamics, caregiver stress, first responder issues, postpartum depression, seasonal affective disorder, and questions of life purpose and isolation. Her work includes support for people facing divorce or separation, communication struggles, forgiveness work, and challenges that arise in aging and geriatric care.

Susan believes clients are the experts of their own stories and that each person carries strengths that can be used to overcome difficult moments. She recognizes that taking the first step toward therapy requires courage and affirms the decision to begin the process. Her experience and collaborative stance aim to meet clients where they are and help them build forward momentum.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Support

Client-centered therapy focuses on the client's own goals and experiences, offering a respectful, nonjudgmental space where the person is treated as the expert of their story and encouraged to draw on their strengths to find solutions. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a practical approach that helps identify unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviors and teaches skills to manage symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress. Motivational Interviewing is a collaborative conversation style designed to strengthen motivation and commitment to change, which can be especially useful for addictions, ambivalence, or making difficult life changes.

Finding the right approach is part of the therapeutic process, and Susan will work collaboratively with each client to determine which methods best fit their needs, goals, and preferences. That collaborative stance helps shape a plan that feels useful and realistic for the individual.

Online therapy with video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging adds practical flexibility for people balancing work, caregiving, or geographic limitations. These options make regular contact with licensed professionals and therapists more accessible, allow for timely check-ins between sessions, and support continuity of care when in-person visits are not feasible.