About Debra
Debra (Debbie) Whatley uses evidence-based therapeutic techniques to guide people through difficult life moments. She is a licensed marriage and family therapist, LMFT, with 25 years of experience in clinical work in Louisiana. Debbie supports people facing addictions, grief, trauma, anger, and self-esteem struggles.
She values clients' own knowledge of their story and focuses on practical steps forward. Debbie listens first and helps clients name clear goals. She looks for strengths the person already has and builds on them.
How Debra works
Sessions focus on learning coping skills, reducing harmful patterns, and increasing emotional awareness. Her background includes long-term clinical work with adults dealing with loss, substance use, and past abuse. That experience shaped a straightforward style that emphasizes real change over jargon.
She encourages small, achievable steps that add up over time. When working on relationship-related problems she focuses on communication, boundaries, and managing anger. For addiction concerns she helps people develop routines, identify triggers, and strengthen motivation to change.
With grief and trauma she combines understanding of loss with practical coping strategies. Debbie takes a collaborative approach. She partners with each person to tailor sessions to goals and life circumstances.
Her practice uses common-sense language and clear plans so people can apply what they learn between meetings.
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.
Also listed
- Abandonment
- Anger management
- Blended family issues
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Infidelity
- Jealousy
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Post-traumatic stress
- Self esteem
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Training and background
| Register | LMFT |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 25 |
| Languages | English |
| Session format | Online: video, phone, live chat or messaging |
| Country | Louisiana |
Memberships and registers are shown as supplied; they are not licences, and this directory does not verify them.
Online support options
Evidence-based approaches for online support
Two evidence-based techniques commonly used are skill-focused therapy and trauma-informed care. Skill-focused therapy teaches practical tools for managing strong emotions, cravings, or anger and is useful for addiction work and anger management. Trauma-informed care centers on safety and pacing while helping people process past abuse and loss, often using grounding and stabilization strategies.Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences, and what has or hasn’t worked before. Together they will decide which techniques to try and adjust the plan as progress is made.
Online sessions are offered as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to make therapy more flexible. Video calls allow face-to-face interaction for deeper conversation, phone sessions can fit a busy schedule or lower bandwidth, and chat or text messaging supports brief check-ins or ongoing written reflection. These options help people maintain continuity of care while fitting work, caregiving, or travel demands.
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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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