- 30 years experience
- Focus on grief
- Works with caregivers
About Barbara
Barbara Lefdal is a licensed professional counselor with a focus on helping people cope with anxiety, depression, grief, and major life changes. She brings 30 years of experience in South Dakota to her work and uses a compassionate, down-to-earth manner during sessions. Clients can expect a calm presence and steady guidance when they are facing emotional stress or life transitions.
She often helps people who are caring for others, dealing with loneliness, or adjusting to aging and related challenges. Money and financial issues are also listed among the concerns she addresses, alongside communication problems and mood disorders. Barbara pays attention to how life events, losses, and role changes affect day-to-day thinking and feeling.
Her style draws on several approaches to match what each person needs. She uses client-centered methods to follow the client's lead, cognitive behavioral techniques to address unhelpful thoughts and behaviors, and mindfulness practices to build present-moment awareness. Motivational interviewing and psychodynamic ideas also shape how she helps people find clarity and purpose.
Barbara prioritizes clear, practical steps alongside space for emotional processing. She works with individuals to set achievable goals and to develop coping strategies they can use between sessions. Over time the aim is to reduce overwhelming feelings, improve communication, and restore a sense of agency.
Sessions are conducted in English, and international clients are not accepted. To begin, clients use the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule according to therapist availability.
How therapy approaches shape online work
Client-centered therapy focuses on listening closely and following the client's priorities so people feel heard and respected; it helps with clarity during confusing life transitions. Cognitive behavioral therapy looks at the link between thoughts, feelings, and actions and offers practical exercises to reduce anxiety and lift mood. Mindfulness therapy teaches simple attention skills to steady strong emotions and improve day-to-day coping.Finding the right approach is part of the process. Barbara will collaborate with each person to decide which methods fit their goals, needs, and comfort level. She adapts techniques as therapy progresses so the plan stays useful and realistic.
Session formats are not specified in the biography, so confirm current options before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life by reducing travel and allowing shorter check-ins or flexible scheduling. It can also let people use tools like thought records, mindfulness practices, and brief behavioral experiments between sessions to reinforce progress.
Areas of focus
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does Barbara address?
She works with stress, anxiety, grief, depression, and coping with life changes, plus related issues such as caregiver stress, isolation, and money and financial issues.
How would you describe her therapeutic style?
Her approach is warm and practical, blending client-centered listening with cognitive behavioral and mindfulness techniques to help people make small, workable changes.
What is her professional background?
Barbara brings 30 years of clinical experience and draws on a range of approaches including motivational interviewing and psychodynamic ideas to support long-term change.
Where is she based and how is she licensed?
She practices in South Dakota and holds the credential LPC-MH as listed in her profile.
Which languages are sessions offered in?
Sessions are offered in English only.
Can people outside the United States work with her?
International clients are not accepted at this time.
How are fees and payment handled?
Costs vary with location and availability; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
What do I do to start working together?
Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions based on the therapist's availability.