About Kristen
Dr. Kristen Pavela is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a doctorate in social work and ten years of clinical practice. She provides straightforward, compassionate care for people facing stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, and grief.
Her warm, interactive style aims to help clients feel heard and respected from the first conversation. Dr. Pavela draws on several approaches to tailor treatment to each person.
She uses Client-Centered Therapy to follow what matters most to the client and build a trusting working relationship.
How Kristen works
She applies Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people notice and change unhelpful thoughts and behaviors. Motivational Interviewing helps when making difficult changes, and psychodynamic ideas can uncover patterns rooted in earlier life experiences. Sessions focus on practical steps and clear goals.
She helps people cope with parenting strain, relationship difficulties, anger, intimacy issues, sleep or eating concerns, career stress, ADHD, and compassion fatigue. She also supports those managing trauma, abuse, or substance use challenges. Dr.
Pavela practices in Wisconsin and holds LCSW licensure in Illinois and Wisconsin. Conversations are collaborative: she and the person work together to set priorities and measure progress. She aims to reduce shame and blame while building real skills for day-to-day life.
If someone is ready to try therapy, Dr. Pavela offers a respectful, nonjudgmental place to begin. She helps people set achievable steps and stay accountable as they work toward change.
Kristen lists 4 ways of working on the entry:
What Kristen works with
The areas below are the ones Kristen selected when setting up a profile. The first few are listed as the main focus; the rest are also named.
Also listed
- Abandonment
- ADHD
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating disorders
- Family conflicts
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- LGBT
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Parenting issues
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Relationship issues
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sleeping disorders
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Women's issues
- Young adult issues
Training and background
| Register | LCSW |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 10 |
| Languages | English |
| Session format | Online: video, phone, live chat or messaging |
| Country | Wisconsin |
Memberships and registers are shown as supplied; they are not licences, and this directory does not verify them.
Online support options
How her approaches translate to online work
Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and following what matters most to the person. Online sessions use that same stance to build trust and shape goals around the client's priorities. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps people identify unhelpful thoughts and try new behaviors; in remote sessions this often includes concrete homework and real-time skill practice between meetings.Choosing the best approach is a team effort. The therapist will discuss goals, try methods, and adjust the plan based on what works and what feels right to the person. That collaborative process helps find practical ways to manage stress, addiction concerns, mood, or relationship and parenting strains.
Online options include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video is useful when visual cues help the conversation, phone calls work well when bandwidth is limited, and chat or text can fit quick check-ins or brief coaching during a busy day. These formats make sessions easier to fit around work, caregiving, or travel while keeping continuity of care.
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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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