Tina LaPorta , LMFT

Tina LaPorta brings 15 years of clinical experience supporting adults and adolescents through depression, anxiety, trauma, substance use, relationship challenges, and life transitions. She holds two master’s degrees in Psychology - one in College Teaching and a second in counseling with a specialization in marriage and family therapy - and she is credentialed as an LMFT, which stands for Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.

Her career began in academia as an adjunct professor of psychology in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she taught for six years before moving into direct clinical work. In community mental health settings she worked with adults experiencing severe and chronic symptoms, including schizophrenia, and provided care for both adults and adolescents with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders across outpatient, intensive outpatient, and partial hospitalization programs.

Tina has substantial military counseling experience, having worked with active duty service members and combat veterans. Her federal service includes roles as a psychologist at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, work on Department of Defense bases including Fort Sam Houston and Fort Bliss, and later positions with the Department of Veterans Affairs serving in Vet Centers as a licensed marriage and family therapist.

Clinically she favors a cognitive behavioral therapy approach, focusing on changing thought patterns and behaviors to help clients reach their goals. She combines that orientation with experience in relationship and family work, addiction treatment, and trauma-informed care, and she welcomes questions about her practice.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Care with Tina LaPorta

Tina often uses cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps clients identify and change unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors to reduce symptoms like anxiety and depression and improve daily functioning. She also uses client-centered therapy, a supportive approach that emphasizes empathic listening and collaboration so clients can explore values, build self-esteem, and find their own solutions. Motivational interviewing is another tool she employs when addressing ambivalence about change - it focuses on strengthening a person’s own motivation to make changes in areas such as substance use, health behaviors, or life goals.

Choosing the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. Tina works collaboratively with clients to assess needs, preferences, and goals, and she adapts techniques from these approaches to create a treatment plan that fits each person’s situation.

Online therapy offers practical flexibility for people with busy schedules, mobility limits, or geographic constraints. Through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging, clients can access care from licensed professionals and therapists from home or other convenient locations, making it easier to maintain consistent sessions and to integrate therapy into everyday life.