Shakina Small, LPC

Shakina Small is an LPC - Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania with 26 years of clinical experience. She works with adults facing relationship strain, trauma and abuse, parenting stress, addiction, mood challenges, and confidence struggles. She also supports people navigating intimacy issues, codependency concerns, ADHD, and major life transitions.

Her approach is straightforward and practical. She uses client-centered methods that focus on what matters to the person in front of her. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy techniques are part of her work to help people spot unhelpful thoughts and try different behaviors. She also draws on Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Emotionally-Focused Therapy tools when problems involve emotional regulation or attachment patterns.

Shakina has worked in many settings over her career, including schools, residential programs, group homes, inpatient and outpatient services, and church-related environments. That background means she’s used to working with people who have complex histories, including sexual, emotional, and physical trauma. She has helped people affected by adoption and foster care issues, blended family challenges, and substance use concerns.

Sessions tend to be direct and educational when needed. She blends conversational listening with concrete skills and occasional creative techniques, such as writing or role work, to help people access feelings and practice new ways of relating. Her stated aim is to help clients identify roots of repetitive patterns and take steps toward healthier behavior.

If you’re weighing a first session, expect a practical conversation about what you want to change and realistic steps to try between meetings.

How her approaches translate to online therapy