About Shawanda
Dr. Shawanda Woods-Smith greets people with a calm, practical approach. She helps those feeling overwhelmed by anxiety, stress, depression, relationship strain, grief, or life changes.
She also supports people facing addiction, parenting pressures, LGBT concerns, ADHD, and intimacy or career challenges. She is a licensed psychologist in Louisiana - LA Psychologist 1298 - with 16 years of experience. She focuses on clear goals and steady progress.
In sessions she listens, asks practical questions, and helps clients set manageable steps they can try between meetings.
How Shawanda works
Her work draws on client-centered principles, cognitive behavioral strategies, mindfulness, motivational interviewing, and solution-focused techniques. That means attention to what matters most to the client, spotting unhelpful thinking patterns, learning skills to stay present, and building small, achievable changes. Sessions are collaborative and tailored to each person’s needs.
Dr. Woods-Smith also pays attention to family and caregiving stress, blended family dynamics, communication and commitment concerns, and issues such as immigration, hospice and end-of-life challenges, and domestic violence. She offers education about how life events, biology, and culture can affect feelings and relationships.
If someone wants a therapist who sets clear goals and works alongside them, she offers that steady, practical support. The focus is on finding what helps in everyday life and building skills that fit each person’s situation.
Shawanda lists 6 ways of working on the entry:
What Shawanda works with
The areas below are the ones Shawanda selected when setting up a profile. The first few are listed as the main focus; the rest are also named.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Trauma and abuse
Also listed
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Anger management
- Bipolar disorder
- Blended family issues
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Immigration issues
- Infidelity
- Intellectual disability
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- LGBT
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Self esteem
- Self-love
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Training and background
| Register | LA Psychologist |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 16 |
| 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
Approaches that guide online sessions
Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and building a strong working relationship so the client feels understood and can set their own direction. It helps people who need a supportive space to weigh options and make changes at their own pace.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts influence feelings and actions. In online sessions this translates into identifying patterns, testing new ways of thinking, and practicing different behaviors between meetings to reduce anxiety, depression, and stress.
Mindfulness Therapy teaches simple practices to stay present and reduce reactivity. It often helps with stress, anger, and emotional ups and downs by developing awareness and breathing or attention techniques that can be used anytime.
Finding the right approach is a shared process. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences, and practical needs, then recommend strategies to try. Together they review what is working and adjust methods to fit the person’s life and progress.
Online therapy provides flexibility for people with busy schedules or limited travel options. Video calls allow face-to-face conversations; phone sessions use less bandwidth and can be easier during a short break. Live chat and text-based messaging support quick check-ins, shorter contacts, or ongoing written reflections between sessions. These options make it easier to keep steady momentum and practice skills in real-world moments.
Start online instead of waiting
Our partner service asks a few questions about what you are looking for and matches you with a therapist for sessions from home.
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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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