Shawna Chandler, LCSW

Shawna Chandler is a California-based licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) with two decades of experience. She helps people who are feeling overwhelmed by stress, anxiety, low self-esteem, relationship strain, trauma, or depression. Her approach is direct and compassionate, aiming to make the first steps toward change feel manageable.

Shawna creates a calm, nonjudgmental space where clients can talk through difficult thoughts and feelings. She focuses on practical ways to reduce distress and build confidence. Sessions emphasize real-world tools clients can use between meetings.

Her background includes long-term clinical work in settings where people face relationship challenges, trauma and abuse, and mood concerns. Shawna blends methods to match each person’s needs rather than using a single technique for everyone. This may include behavioral strategies, mindfulness skills, or processing approaches when trauma is part of the picture.

Many clients work with her on communication problems, commitment and control issues, codependency, or the specific pain of abandonment. She also addresses caregiver stress, blended family concerns, divorce and separation, and domestic violence impact. Shawna pays attention to how mood and personality patterns affect daily life.

In sessions she partners with clients to set goals and practice skills that fit their routines. The focus is practical progress and greater emotional ease over time.

Approaches that guide online sessions

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on clarifying values and taking small, meaningful steps toward them. It helps when worries or avoidance get in the way of living a valued life. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) teaches practical skills to change unhelpful thought and behavior patterns. It is often used for anxiety, depression, and stress to create concrete changes in daily routines.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Shawna will partner with each person to identify which methods feel most useful. Together they decide whether to emphasize skills training, mindfulness, or trauma processing based on goals and preferences.

If you are considering online sessions, confirm the current session options before booking. Ask about the available formats and scheduling to make sure they fit your routine. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy around work or caregiving, reduce travel time, and let people keep a steady rhythm of skill practice between sessions. Licensed professionals adapt session pacing and tools to suit the online setting so progress can continue even when life is busy.