- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Emotion-Focused Therapy
- EMDR
About JoAnn
JoAnn DePetro is a California LMFT with 40 years of professional experience. She works with stress, anxiety, relationship concerns, family conflict, trauma and abuse, and depression. She also focuses on issues like abandonment, body image, control struggles, and guilt and shame. Her work is offered in English and she accepts international clients.
Her approach is grounded in practical conversation and attentive listening. Sessions aim to name what feels stuck and to look at how past patterns affect current feelings. She uses Attachment-Based ideas to look at connection and Emotional-Focused Therapy to help identify and move through strong emotions. EMDR is one of the methods she may use when trauma memories are part of the problem.
JoAnn favors a client-centered stance, which means she works from the concerns the person brings and adapts the way she talks and plans work together. She integrates existential perspectives when people are wrestling with meaning, choice, or life transitions. Expect clear, steady attention to what matters most to the client rather than technical jargon.
Over decades of practice she has worked with a range of mood and anxiety presentations, including panic, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and mood disorders. She also supports people dealing with loneliness, impulsivity, and difficulties tied to narcissistic dynamics. Conversations can cover how past family patterns still shape daily life.
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time. To begin, select the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
How her approaches translate to online work
JoAnn commonly draws on Attachment-Based Therapy and Emotionally-Focused Therapy in her work. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at patterns of connection and how early relationships shape current expectations. It can help when guilt or shame tie to feeling cut off or fearing rejection. Emotionally-Focused Therapy focuses on naming and shifting strong feelings so people can respond differently in relationships and in their inner life.She also uses EMDR for trauma-related memories when that fits the person's needs. EMDR involves bilateral stimulation while revisiting a distressing memory to reduce its emotional charge and the way it interrupts daily life. It is often used when past events continue to trigger panic, flashbacks, or persistent shame reactions.
Finding the right approach usually emerges in early sessions. She works collaboratively to match methods to a person's goals, history, and comfort with the work. Clients and therapist decide together whether to focus on emotions, attachment patterns, trauma processing, or a mix of approaches.
The biography does not list specific online session formats, so confirm current options before booking. In general, online work can make scheduling easier and help fit sessions into a busy week. Video sessions allow face-to-face interaction, while other formats can make check-ins shorter or use less bandwidth - useful when a quick update is needed.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
40+ years
Listed in
California
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does she work with?
She works with stress, anxiety, relationship and family issues, trauma and abuse, and depression. Additional focus areas include guilt and shame, body image, abandonment, and loneliness.
How would she approach shame or guilt in sessions?
She uses client-centered conversation and Emotional-Focused Therapy to help name painful feelings and examine how they affect behavior. Treatment plans are adapted to the client's specific situation.
What is her background and experience?
She is a California LMFT with 40 years of professional work experience supporting people with mood, anxiety, trauma, and relationship concerns.
Where is she licensed and what credential does she hold?
She holds the LMFT credential and is licensed in California.
Which languages are supported in sessions?
Sessions are offered in English and she accepts international clients.
What session formats are available?
The original biography does not list specific session formats. Confirm current session options before booking by checking the online therapy options.
How does payment and cost work?
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If you are in danger or thinking about harming yourself, use the crisis numbers.