About David
David Smith is an Iowa-based licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) with 25 years of experience. He focuses on helping people who are feeling stuck by turning small steps into lasting change. He aims to be approachable, practical, and cooperative in sessions.
David listens first and then helps clients sort out what is getting in the way of their goals. He works with common concerns like stress, anxiety, relationship strain, anger, depression, and major life shifts.
Background and approach
He also gives attention to issues such as family of origin problems, codependency, commitment struggles, and struggles tied to aging and fatherhood. In sessions he uses familiar, straightforward methods. He draws from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, cognitive-behavioral ideas, client-centered practices, existential perspectives, and couples work influenced by the Gottman approach.
His style is action-oriented while still making room for reflection and meaning. He describes therapy as a collaborative effort. Clients can expect regular check-ins about how the work is going and adjustments based on feedback.
That gives the work direction and keeps it relevant to each person’s life. David helps people explore alternatives in how they think, feel, and act. He supports practical skills for coping and clearer ways to communicate.
The goal is steady progress toward more connection, calm, and satisfaction in everyday life.
Approach options that fit online therapy
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, focuses on clarifying values and taking committed action even when feelings are difficult. It can help people who feel stuck by shifting attention toward what matters most and building small, steady habits. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, helps identify unhelpful thoughts and habits and then practices new behaviors and coping skills to reduce anxiety and depression. Client-Centered Therapy centers the client’s own perspective, using empathic listening to help people find their own solutions and build confidence.Choosing the right approach is part of the work itself. The therapist will talk with each client about goals and preferences and together decide which methods to try first. Sessions include regular check-ins so the plan can be adjusted when something isn’t working or when new priorities emerge.
Online formats make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life. Video calls allow face-to-face interaction for deeper conversations, phone sessions can be useful when bandwidth or camera use is a concern, and live chat or text messaging work well for brief updates or quick check-ins between sessions. These options provide flexibility for scheduling, shorter check-ins around work, and ways to continue progress when in-person visits are not practical.
Frequently asked questions
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Anger management
Also works with
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Attachment issues
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 25 years
- Licensed
- Iowa
- Languages
- English