Therapist Karen VanWyk Photo

Karen VanWyk, LCSW

Stress, Anxiety Trauma, Abuse Grief Depression Coping with life changes
Video Phone Live Chat Messaging

About me

“Why is this happening to me?” “How can I trust myself to make the right decisions?” “Will I always be a people pleaser instead of looking out for myself?” “Why can’t I be happy right now?” Are questions like these consuming your thoughts? Do you often experience feelings of helplessness and hopelessness?
Sometimes we need guidance to get past emotional turmoil and back on a path towards contentment in our lives. Therapy can help with navigating through life’s problems by setting and accomplishing goals to help you return to good mental health with personal and/or professional growth. Therapy is an inviting place where every single part of you is welcome, even the parts that are uncomfortable to share. You are encouraged to allow yourself to experience any emotion or thought freely.
Hello and welcome! I am from the great state of Texas and have been an accomplished psychotherapist for 30 years. I have a broad range of clinical expertise in assisting individuals, couples and families. I have experience in helping clients with stress and anxiety, trauma and abuse, depression, coping with grief and loss, as well as other equally important issues. It is my genuine hope that every client journeys along their therapeutic path with a renewed sense of understanding and self-appreciation.
This is truly my life’s calling and it is wonderful to be able to watch people make positive changes in their lives. Throughout the years, I have been able to build rapport quickly with compassion and empathy towards my clients who have ranged in ages from 4 to 104.
I have found that utilizing an integrative therapeutic approach is beneficial to meet each individual’s unique needs. This treatment, along with a wealth of life experience, offers a more flexible and inclusive perspective to assist in navigating through unhealthy lifestyle patterns.
The first step is the most difficult and here you are! Getting started can be pretty scary — to talk to someone you do not know about things that make you uncomfortable, sad, angry, overjoyed, or embarrassed — but I would like to reassure you that this process is here to help you grow. If you seek to have a voice in the direction of your therapy and view the therapeutic relationship as a partnership, then I welcome the opportunity to meet with you and begin your healing journey.
Tell me your story.




Professional experience

29yrs in practice
Stress, Anxiety Trauma, Abuse Grief Depression Coping with life changes

Additional areas of focus: 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, Guilt and shame, Hoarding, Hospice and end-of-life counseling, Impulsivity, Infidelity, Isolation / loneliness, Jealousy, Life purpose, Midlife crisis, Veteran and Armed Forces Issues, Money and financial issues, Mood disorders, Narcissism, Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD, Panic disorder and panic attacks, Paranoia, Personality disorders, Phobias, Postpartum depression, Post-traumatic stress, Pregnancy and childbirth, 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, Women's issues, Workplace issues, Young adult issues

Clinical approaches: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Attachment-Based Therapy, Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), Mindfulness Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Narrative Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy, Internal Family Systems

Services offered

Video
Phone
Live Chat
Messaging

License information

TX LCSW 41704

Reviews

These quotes represent just a few of the many positive reviews that we have received for Karen VanWyk. 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.

Karen is literally the best. She is such a good listener.

Written on Dec 18, 2024 after therapy with Karen for 1 year and 2 months on issues concerning depression, relationship issues, family conflicts, grief, intimacy-related issues, sleeping disorders, self esteem, anger management, coping with life changes, and adhd

Absolutely love her! My life advisor and guide. She is very flexible and patient. I trust her. Love that she understands me!

Written on Dec 16, 2024 after therapy with Karen for 1 year and 2 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, addictions, relationship issues, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, self esteem, coping with life changes, and coaching

Karen is incredible. Her loving and kind nature coupled with her wisdom and expertise are exactly what I need in a therapist. She's wonderful!

Written on Dec 14, 2024 after therapy with Karen for 2 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, parenting issues, self esteem, bipolar disorder, and adhd

Karen is a very understanding, open minded and compassionate person. She's easy to talk to and goes above and beyond to make sure she understand your needs and your goals.

Written on Dec 10, 2024 after therapy with Karen for 2 weeks on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, addictions, relationship issues, trauma and abuse, grief, self esteem, and adhd

I have worked with a lot of therapists and Karen is by far the best. She knows when to challenge me and when to let me process. She’s knowledgeable, empathetic, and provides wonderful resources that are very helpful to my progress.

Written on Nov 19, 2024 after therapy with Karen for 2 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, eating disorders, and coping with life changes

Karen is a joy to work with. She listens and help when needed. Highly recommend Better Help and my therapist Karen!

Written on Nov 02, 2024 after therapy with Karen for 7 months on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, self esteem, and bipolar disorder