About Debra
Debra (Debbie) Shepard is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) based in Illinois. She works with adults who are feeling overwhelmed by stress, anxiety, addiction, relationship strain, or big life changes. Her tone is warm and practical, helping people take small, manageable steps forward.
Debbie draws on 14 years of experience in behavioral health to shape sessions around each person’s needs. She uses clear, goal-minded techniques that aim to reduce symptoms and build skills for daily life.
How Debra works
Sessions are collaborative and focused on what the client wants to change. Her methods include client-centered work that follows a person’s priorities, cognitive behavioral tools to change unhelpful thoughts and habits, and mindfulness practices to reduce reactivity. She also incorporates ideas from the Gottman Method when relationship patterns are part of the concern.
Motivational interviewing helps when someone is unsure about change or is struggling with addiction. In a typical session she listens, reflects, and offers practical strategies people can try between meetings. She pays attention to strengths and past successes to help clients move forward.
The approach is straightforward and geared toward real-life improvements. Debbie’s practice covers a wide range of concerns such as depression, trauma and abuse, sleep and eating struggles, parenting stress, anger, self-esteem, career issues, bipolar symptoms, compassion fatigue, ADHD, and related challenges. She speaks English and practices in Illinois as an LCSW.
Debra lists 7 ways of working on the entry:
What Debra works with
The areas below are the ones Debra selected when setting up a profile. The first few are listed as the main focus; the rest are also named.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Relationship issues
Also listed
- Abandonment
- ADHD
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Anger management
- Bipolar disorder
- Body image
- Career difficulties
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating disorders
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family problems
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Parenting issues
- Phobias
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Self esteem
- Self-love
- Sleeping disorders
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Trauma and abuse
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Training and background
| Register | LCSW |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 14 |
| Languages | English |
| Session format | Online: video, phone, live chat or messaging |
| Country | Illinois |
Memberships and registers are shown as supplied; they are not licences, and this directory does not verify them.
Online support options
Approaches you can use in online sessions
Debbie commonly uses client-centered work that keeps the session focused on what matters most to the client. This approach emphasizes listening, reflecting, and building on the person’s strengths to set meaningful goals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, is another frequent tool she uses to identify unhelpful thoughts and shift behaviors that keep problems going. CBT is useful for anxiety, depression, sleep and eating issues, and many daily struggles.Choosing an approach is a team effort. Debbie will talk with each person about their goals, past experiences, and preferences, then tailor a plan. That collaborative process may combine client-centered listening with CBT tools, mindfulness practices, Gottman-informed techniques for relationship patterns, or motivational interviewing when motivation feels uncertain.
Online sessions offer practical flexibility. Video calls let people work through issues face to face from wherever they are. Phone sessions can be a good option when bandwidth is limited or when a shorter check-in is needed. Live chat and text-based messaging allow for quick reflections, real-time support between sessions, and steady progress for those who prefer typing. These options help fit therapy into busy schedules and differing daily needs.
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Common questions
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A practical next step
Write down two things you would want to be different in six months. That is the most useful thing to bring to a first session, whoever it is with. If you would rather start now than keep reading, online sessions are the quickest route.
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