Christy Alten, LPC-MH, LMHC

Iowa | Online sessions in South Dakota, Iowa | English | Book with Christy »

Hope-focused counselor with long-term experience

Details

Name	Christy Alten
Credentials	LPC-MH, LMHC
Based in	Iowa
Licensed in	South Dakota, Iowa
Session format	Online
Languages	English
Years in practice	31

About Christy

Christy Alten is a licensed counselor with more than 31 years of experience. She practices in Iowa and brings a hopeful, faith-aware perspective to counseling. She works with adults and adolescents who are facing addiction and mental health challenges.

Christy keeps sessions direct and practical. She listens first and then builds a plan with each person. She uses familiar methods like cognitive behavioral techniques and dialectical behavior approaches, alongside narrative and existential ideas.

Background and approach

Sessions focus on real-life strategies for managing stress, anxiety, sleep problems, and mood changes. Many people come for help with addiction, grief, or relationship struggles tied to family of origin. She also helps with parenting strain, career concerns, codependency, and feelings of emptiness or isolation.

Concerns such as bipolar mood patterns, disruptive mood dysregulation, and anger are included in her work when they are part of a person's story. Christy also offers coaching and support for clinicians. She has decades of experience providing clinical supervision and professional development for helping professionals.

She treats supervision as a collaborative effort to strengthen skills and resilience. Practical matters are discussed openly during early sessions. She explains how therapy will proceed and helps people choose goals they can work toward between meetings.

The aim is steady, manageable progress rather than quick fixes. Her faith informs her approach for clients who want that perspective, while evidence-informed techniques guide the practical tools used in sessions. People who value clear steps, honest conversation, and a hopeful outlook often find her style a good fit.

What this therapist works with

Her listing names Stress, Anxiety, Addictions, Self esteem among the things Christy works with, alongside the areas below.

Stress, Anxiety
Addictions
Self esteem
Depression
Coping with life changes
Family conflicts
Grief
Sleeping disorders
Parenting issues
Anger management
Career difficulties
Bipolar disorder
Coaching
Compassion fatigue
Abandonment
Codependency
Communication problems
Control issues
Dependent personality
Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
Divorce and separation
Drug and alcohol addiction
Emptiness
Family of origin issues
Family problems
Forgiveness
Guilt and shame
Isolation / loneliness
Life purpose
Panic disorder and panic attacks
Pregnancy and childbirth
Self-harm
Self-love
Social anxiety and phobia
Somatization
Women's issues
Workplace issues
Young adult issues

Approaches listed

Narrative Therapy: Named in her listing among her approaches.
Client-Centered Therapy: Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Existential Therapy: Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Gottman Method: Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Mindfulness Therapy: Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Motivational Interviewing: Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Solution-Focused Therapy: Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Somatic Therapy: Listed by Christy among the ways she works.
Training stated: This directory copies the approaches a therapist names and does not check training records. Ask Christy 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 Christy directly how she uses it and what a session usually looks like.

Online session options

How narrative and skill-based work translate online

Christy combines narrative ideas with client-centered and cognitive behavioral approaches to tailor online sessions. Narrative work helps people tell and reframe the stories that shape their choices and relationships, which can be useful for addressing family of origin issues, shame, and life purpose. Client-centered therapy prioritizes a respectful, listening stance and helps people set their own goals and pace. Cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on clear strategies for changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors and is often used for anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and addiction-related patterns.

Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the process, and Christy works collaboratively to determine what fits best. She talks with each person about goals, preferences, and practical needs, and then suggests methods to try. That partnership makes it easier to adjust techniques as progress is made.

Online therapy options include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video allows face-to-face conversation and visual cues, phone sessions use less bandwidth and can fit into a work break, live chat supports shorter check-ins, and messaging is useful for ongoing reflections between sessions. These formats give flexibility for people balancing parenting, work, and recovery while keeping therapy accessible from different locations.

Common questions about this listing

What kinds of concerns does Christy address?

She works with stress, anxiety, addictions, depression, sleep problems, grief, parenting strain, career issues, and related family-of-origin concerns.

What is her therapy style like?

She uses a blend of narrative, client-centered, cognitive behavioral, dialectical behavior, and existential ideas. Sessions focus on listening, building a plan, and teaching practical skills.

How much experience does she bring?

She has 31 years of clinical experience working with adults and adolescents and many years providing clinical supervision for other clinicians.

What credentials and location apply?

Christy holds SD LPC-MH and IA LMHC credentials and practices in Iowa.

Can sessions be conducted in languages other than English?

Sessions are offered in English.

Which session formats are offered?

She provides video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to suit different needs.

How are fees handled?

Cost varies with location and therapist arrangements; sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.

How do I begin working together?

Choose the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule a session based on the therapist's availability.

Contacting this therapist

Sessions with Christy 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 Christy where she has space. Ask about fees, and whether she holds a licence or registration where you live.

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