Therapist Gwendolyn Downing Photo

Gwendolyn Downing, LPC

Stress, Anxiety Addictions Trauma, Abuse Self esteem, Motivation
Video Phone Live Chat Messaging

About me

I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in Alabama, with 36 years experience. I worked in a public agency for several years and have been in private practice for 17 years. I have helped individuals who have been referred through Self-referral, Employee Assistance Programs, and family court systems. I have had the privilege of helping people with Depression and Anxiety, Chemical and Process Addictions, Trauma and abuse issues, Family and Life issues, as well as other challenging situations.

I utilize several therapeutic strategies, including Motivational Interviewing, Emotionally-Focused Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Trauma-focused Therapy, and Solution-Focused Therapy. The strategies utilized are determined by the unique needs of the person with whom I am interacting. I believe each person is unique and presents with unique needs and unique strengths for addressing the identified concerns.

My focus is on people, not labels or statistics. I make it my practice to encourage and elevate people to be the success they were meant to be.

It requires courage and commitment to reach out for help, and I would be honored to be part of your journey. I look forward to working with you!

Professional experience

41 yrs in practice
Stress, Anxiety Addictions Trauma, Abuse Self esteem, Motivation

Additional areas of focus: Relationship issues, Family conflicts, Grief, Intimacy-related issues, Eating disorders, Parenting issues, Anger management, Career difficulties, Bipolar disorder, Depression, Coping with life changes, Coaching, Compassion fatigue, ADHD, Abandonment, Attachment issues, Blended family issues, Body image, Cancer, Caregiver issues and stress, Chronic pain, illness, and disability, Codependency, Commitment issues, Communication problems, Control issues, Coping with natural or human-caused disaster, Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD), Divorce and separation, Domestic violence, Drug and alcohol addiction, Eating and food-related issues, Family of origin issues, Family problems, First responder issues, Forgiveness, Gender dysphoria, Guilt and shame, HIV / AIDS, Hospice and end-of-life counseling, Infidelity, Isolation / loneliness, Life purpose, Veteran and Armed Forces Issues, Money and financial issues, Mood disorders, Multicultural concerns, Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD, Panic disorder and panic attacks, Phobias, Postpartum depression, Post-traumatic stress, Prejudice and discrimination, Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling), Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), Self-love, Sex addiction, Sexual assault and abuse, Sexual dysfunction, Smoking / vaping cessation, Social anxiety and phobia, Somatization, Traumatic brain injury, Women's issues, Workplace issues, Young adult issues

Clinical approaches: Attachment-Based Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), Gottman Method, Mindfulness Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy

Services offered

Video
Phone
Live Chat
Messaging

License information

AL LPC 1393

Reviews

These quotes represent just a few of the many positive reviews that we have received for Gwendolyn Downing. We don't pay anyone to provide their review and they are all made voluntarily. Some people's experience receiving therapy with BetterHelp might be different.

She is great and I would recommend anyone have her as a therapist she's great at what it's supposed to be and she asks the right questions so far it's a perfect review for her

Written on Mar 21, 2025 after therapy with Gwendolyn for 2 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, intimacy-related issues, parenting issues, self esteem, anger management, and adhd

Gwendolyn has been a great therapist. After a couple of weeks I am already seeing improvement in my every day life. She is calm and wise and I’m certain there’s plenty left to learn from our therapy sessions. I have enjoyed opening up to her and discovering new ways to overcome my struggles.

Written on Mar 07, 2025 after therapy with Gwendolyn for 2 weeks on issues concerning stress, anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, parenting issues, career difficulties, and coping with life changes

She has helped me a lot

Written on Mar 01, 2025 after therapy with Gwendolyn for 2 weeks on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, addictions, trauma and abuse, eating disorders, self esteem, bipolar disorder, and adhd

I am so thankful to have been matched with Ms. Downing. She’s very understanding and listens to my concerns and has/continues to help me to work through struggles I have and grow in areas I’ve had a hard time getting to on my own. I love that she has a Christian approach to her counseling and she’s helped guide me to a healthy understanding of God’s love and guidance in my life. I especially like that she provides worksheets and guides that I can work through on my own between sessions and have found them quite helpful. I would absolutely recommend her as a counselor.

Written on Feb 12, 2025 after therapy with Gwendolyn for 4 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, self esteem, coping with life changes, and compassion fatigue

I have been working with Gwen for over a year and I can definitely attest to her skills. She is the BEST therapist I’ve had; she is organized, responsive, flexible, and always prepared. As a mental healthcare practitioner, I started working with her after a traumatic experience and I know I would not be where I am now if I matched with a different therapist. She is highly educated in the most up to date research and always brings in trauma-informed strategies to promote healing. She created such a comfortable environment for me at my lowest that helped me feel ready to truly work on reaching my therapy goals. I feel lucky to have had the opportunity to learn and grow in my understanding of trauma and the various ways I can cope.

Written on Feb 02, 2025 after therapy with Gwendolyn for 1 year and 9 months on issues concerning stress, anxiety, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, eating disorders, self esteem, coping with life changes, coaching, compassion fatigue, and adhd

She has been a Godsend. I understand better and can identify my own issues that contribute to my stresses. She’s great!

Written on Jan 06, 2025 after therapy with Gwendolyn for 11 months on issues concerning depression, trauma and abuse, and intimacy-related issues