Betty Laird, LCSW
Therapist who listens, reflects, and guides
Details
| Name | Betty Laird |
|---|---|
| Credentials | LCSW |
| Based in | Indiana |
| Licensed in | Indiana |
| Session format | Online |
| Languages | English |
| Years in practice | 40 |
About Betty
Betty Laird is a licensed clinical social worker in Indiana with four decades of experience. She frames therapy as a partnership where someone can speak about pain and confusion without judgment. Sessions focus on helping people understand their stories and find clearer ways to move forward.
She keeps language simple and practical in the room. Betty listens for how events and relationships shape a person's sense of self. She helps people name difficult feelings and notice patterns that cause stress or repeat old wounds.
Background and approach
Betty draws on Narrative-informed ideas to help people separate themselves from the problems they face. She also uses attachment-based and client-centered ways of working to strengthen relationships with self and others. Cognitive techniques are blended in when people want tools to manage anxiety, mood, or sleep troubles.
Many referrals come for grief, trauma and abuse, anxiety, depression, compassion fatigue, and relationship struggles. She also supports concerns such as parenting stress, eating and body image issues, chronic illness, caregiving burden, and work or career questions. Betty has experience with mood conditions including bipolar and with attention challenges like ADHD.
Her style is calm and steady. She invites curiosity rather than judgment and helps people test new approaches between sessions. Cinematherapy - using film to reflect on coping and conflict - is sometimes offered as a creative way to think about patterns.
Betty works with people who want a thoughtful listener and practical options. She aims to help clients rewrite unhelpful stories about themselves and develop realistic steps toward change.
What this therapist works with
Her listing names Stress, Anxiety, Trauma and abuse, Grief among the things Betty works with, alongside the areas below.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Depression
- Compassion fatigue
- LGBT
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Intimacy-related issues
- Eating disorders
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Coping with life changes
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Adoption and foster care
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Attachment issues
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- Avoidant personality
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fertility issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Mood disorders
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Trichotillomania
- Visually impaired
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches listed
- Narrative Therapy: Named in her listing among her approaches.
- Attachment-Based Therapy: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Client-Centered Therapy: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT): Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Existential Therapy: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Mindfulness Therapy: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Motivational Interviewing: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Psychodynamic Therapy: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Solution-Focused Therapy: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Trauma-Focused Therapy: Listed by Betty among the ways she works.
- Training stated: This directory copies the approaches a therapist names and does not check training records. Ask Betty directly how much of the work is narrative and what a session usually looks like.
Narrative Therapy in this listing
Narrative Therapy appears in this therapist's own list of approaches. That tells you it is part of how she works. It does not tell you how much of a session it shapes, and this directory does not check or rate training.
If a narrative approach is what you are looking for, it is worth asking Betty directly how she uses it and what a session usually looks like.
Online session options
Approaches that shape online work
Betty uses Narrative-informed ideas to help people tell their stories in new ways and separate themselves from persistent problems. Narrative work can be useful for grief, identity questions, relationship troubles, and patterns that keep repeating.She also draws on attachment-based methods that look at how early and current relationships affect trust, closeness, and emotional safety. That approach can help with intimacy, caregiver stress, and communication difficulties. Client-centered therapy is a steadying influence in her work - it centers the person's experience and priorities and creates space for honest reflection.
Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. Betty talks with people about goals and preferences and adjusts methods to fit each person's needs. She often combines narrative, attachment, and practical cognitive techniques so the work feels useful and relevant.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text messaging. Video lets people see facial cues and do deeper conversational work. Phone sessions can be easier when bandwidth is limited or for quick check-ins. Live chat and text messaging offer flexibility for short updates, reflections between sessions, or when scheduling is tight. These options make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life and to try different ways of connecting as the work progresses.
Common questions about this listing
What concerns does Betty help people with?
She works with stress, anxiety, grief, depression, trauma and abuse, compassion fatigue, relationship and intimacy-related issues, and many more life challenges listed in her specialties.
How would you describe her therapy style?
She uses a calm, nonjudgmental approach that focuses on listening and partnership. Sessions mix reflective conversation with practical tools when helpful.
What is her professional background?
She is a licensed clinical social worker with 40 years of experience, and she studied at Loyola University in Chicago.
Where is she based and licensed?
She is licensed as an LCSW in Indiana.
In which languages can sessions be held?
Sessions are offered in English.
What session formats are offered for online work?
She provides video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging as ways to connect.
How does payment and cost work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions are provided through a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Choose the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions based on therapist availability.
Contacting this therapist
Sessions with Betty are arranged through our partner platform. It asks a few questions about what you are looking for, then shows you the therapists available to you, including Betty where she has space. Ask about fees, and whether she holds a licence or registration where you live.
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