Karen Gano , MD, LCSW-C, LCSW, CSW

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." ~ Anais Nin

Karen Gano is a seasoned clinician whose work centers on empowerment and practical change. She holds the credentials MD, LCSW-C, LCSW, and CSW - MD indicating a Doctor of Medicine, LCSW-C and LCSW identifying licensed clinical social worker credentials, and CSW denoting clinical social worker. She earned a Master of Social Work from the University of Pittsburgh and brings 33 years of clinical counseling experience to her practice.

Her approach, which she calls Empowerment Counseling, blends motivational interviewing with compassion-focused, client-centered, solution-focused brief therapy, mindfulness, and strength-based techniques. This mix allows her to support clients in shifting perspectives, setting attainable goals, and building practical coping skills. She maintains a holistic, goal-oriented practice with an emphasis on helping people move from surviving to thriving.

Karen works primarily with women navigating life transitions - such as separation, divorce, career change, relocation, empty nest, and illness - and also provides support for healthcare workers, drawing on extensive experience as a medical social worker. Her background includes work in trauma, emergency medicine, critical care, oncology, palliative care, and domestic abuse, which informs a compassionate, experienced response to complex situations.

Her professional aim is to help clients expand their support network, find their voice, increase self-awareness and self-esteem, and adopt healthy coping strategies. Her guiding mantra is "Self-Care + Time = Healing," and she focuses on empowering clients to make the changes they want in their lives.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Care

Client-centered therapy places the client at the heart of the work, emphasizing empathy, active listening, and the client’s own goals; it helps people who need support exploring values, building self-esteem, and making choices that reflect their priorities. Mindfulness therapy teaches simple awareness practices that reduce reactivity and support emotional regulation, which can be useful for anxiety, stress, and coping with life changes. Motivational interviewing is a collaborative, nonjudgmental method that helps people clarify their motivation for change and develop practical steps toward goals, often useful for addiction, behavior change, and transitions.

Choosing the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. Karen works collaboratively with each person to identify the methods that best fit their needs, goals, and preferences, adjusting techniques as progress unfolds so treatment stays focused and relevant.

Online therapy offers flexible ways to connect - video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging - making it easier to fit counseling into a busy life or when in-person options are limited. These formats allow licensed professionals to provide consistent support, maintain momentum between sessions, and adapt work to each client’s schedule and comfort level.