Darlene Kelly, LCSW
Narrative-focused licensed clinical social worker
Details
| Name | Darlene Kelly |
|---|---|
| Credentials | LCSW |
| Based in | Louisiana |
| Licensed in | Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi |
| Session format | Online |
| Languages | English |
| Years in practice | 24 |
About Darlene
Darlene Kelly is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 24 years of experience. She offers calm, straightforward support for people facing hard life moments. She listens without judging and helps clients name what they want to change.
Darlene draws on Narrative approaches to help people reframe difficult stories. She also uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Client-Centered methods to help clients notice what matters and take small steps. Sessions focus on practical moves rather than labels or long lectures.
Background and approach
Her practice covers a wide range of concerns including anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse, relationship strains, grief, and addiction issues. She also supports people dealing with parenting pressures, career shifts, stress, and challenges from ADHD or bipolar concerns. Darlene works with intimacy-related issues, body image, sleep and eating problems, and burnout or compassion fatigue.
Darlene aims to create a space where people can talk through past hurts and figure out next steps. She helps clients break big problems into manageable actions. Many sessions involve exploring stories that keep a problem in place and then testing new, doable behaviors.
Clients can expect a warm, patient presence and clear direction when needed. Darlene encourages practical routines, values-based choices, and small experiments that build confidence. She emphasizes steady progress over quick fixes.
What this therapist works with
Her listing names LGBT, Trauma and abuse, Parenting issues among the things Darlene works with, alongside the areas below.
- LGBT
- Trauma and abuse
- Parenting issues
- Career difficulties
- Coping with life changes
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Eating disorders
- Sleeping disorders
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Bipolar disorder
- Depression
- Coaching
- Compassion fatigue
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Adoption and foster care
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Antisocial personality
- 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
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Fertility issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- HIV / AIDS
- Hoarding
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Immigration issues
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intellectual disability
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexuality
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Traumatic brain injury
- Trichotillomania
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches listed
- Narrative Therapy: Named in her listing among her approaches.
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Attachment-Based Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Client-Centered Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT): Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Existential Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Gottman Method: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Imago Relationship Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Jungian Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Mindfulness Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Motivational Interviewing: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Psychodynamic Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Solution-Focused Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Somatic Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Trauma-Focused Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Internal Family Systems: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Systemic Therapy: Listed by Darlene among the ways she works.
- Training stated: This directory copies the approaches a therapist names and does not check training records. Ask Darlene 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 Darlene directly how she uses it and what a session usually looks like.
Online session options
Therapeutic approaches and online care
Many people find Narrative therapy useful because it helps separate a person from the problem by re-telling and reshaping the stories that keep them stuck. Narrative work is often used for trauma, identity questions, relationship patterns, and grief. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, focuses on clarifying personal values and taking committed, small actions even when emotions are painful; it is commonly helpful for anxiety, depression, and life transitions. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early connection patterns shape current relationships and helps people notice and change interaction habits that cause pain.Choosing the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will talk with each person about their goals, preferences, and daily realities and then try methods that fit. Sessions are collaborative - the plan can be adjusted as goals and needs change.
Online therapy in this practice is offered by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging for flexibility. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues, phone sessions work well with limited bandwidth, live chat supports quick check-ins, and messaging lets someone share between sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, caregiving, or travel schedules while keeping the focus on steady, practical progress.
Common questions about this listing
What concerns does Darlene commonly address?
She works with a broad range of issues including anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse, relationship and intimacy concerns, grief, addictions, stress, parenting pressures, career changes, ADHD, bipolar concerns, and self-esteem and body image struggles.
What is her therapeutic style like?
She blends Narrative ideas with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Client-Centered approaches to help people tell their stories differently and take values-based steps. Sessions are practical and focused on small changes.
How much clinical experience does she have?
Darlene has 24 years of experience as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, bringing long-term practice with many common life and mental health concerns.
Where is she licensed and based?
She holds LCSW credentials and is identified with Texas and Mississippi LCSW listings while practicing out of Louisiana.
Which languages are supported and can international clients work together?
Sessions are offered in English, and she accepts international clients who can join by the listed session formats.
What session formats are available?
Therapy is offered via video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to fit different schedules and preferences.
How is cost structured?
Costs vary by location and therapist availability and use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin a first session?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule based on the therapist's availability.
Contacting this therapist
Sessions with Darlene 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 Darlene where she has space. Ask about fees, and whether she holds a licence or registration where you live.
Or see other therapists in Louisiana »
This is a partner link. We will earn a commission if you sign up through it, at no cost to you. It does not change what you pay or the order of the listings.
Other listings in Louisiana
- Jenise Aydell-Hontiveros, LCSW - Louisiana
- Tahreer Ahmad, LPC - Louisiana
- Denise Flack, LPC - Louisiana
- Dr. Rita Martin, LPC - Louisiana
- All therapists for lgbt »