Hi, I’m Liz Serens, a Licensed Professional Counselor in Virginia. I support individual adults navigating anxiety, Attention‑Deficit–related disorders (including ADHD), identity exploration, stress, and life transitions. My style is collaborative and emotionally attuned, offering a steady, nonjudgmental space for growth. I welcome clients from diverse backgrounds and identities and hold space without judgment for the full range of human experience. I bring lived experience with ADHD, a learning disability, and the emotional challenges of navigating body image in a culture that often ties worth to appearance. I help clients understand how their patterns and past experiences shape their emotional world, including shame, internalized criticism, and body‑related emotions. I also support individuals dealing with body dysphoria and self‑esteem concerns rooted in distorted or critical self‑perception, and I use simple body‑based grounding skills—like tapping—to support regulation and presence. I don’t provide diagnostic evaluations, including those related to neurodivergent conditions, learning disabilities, or autism, and I don’t offer EMDR. I help clients connect with the right resources while continuing our work in a grounded, supportive way.
In our first session together, here's what you can expect
Our first session is a calm, welcoming space to get settled and see what kind of support feels most helpful for you. • A gentle start I’ll confirm your name, review informed consent, go over your rights with the telehealth transcription system, and share my credentials so you know who you’re working with. • Understanding your needs We’ll explore what brings you in and look at your intake form, assessment scores, medication list, and any cultural or personal context you want me to understand. • What sessions look like We’ll talk through next steps and make sure the pace feels right. Sessions are typically 53–60 minutes, and my goal is to offer a supportive, flexible space where you can show up as you are.
The biggest strengths that I bring into our sessions
My greatest strengths come from the way I blend lived experience, clinical training, and a grounded, steady presence. I understand how disability, identity, and family systems shape a person’s inner world, and I use that insight to help clients feel deeply seen without judgment. I’m skilled at slowing things down, helping clients notice long‑standing patterns, and creating space where difficult emotions can be worked through rather than avoided. I incorporate simple body‑based grounding skills—such as tapping—to support regulation and connection during this process. I work exclusively with individual adults, not couples or families, and I focus on helping each person strengthen their own clarity, boundaries, and emotional resilience.
The clients I'm best positioned to serve
I work best with individual adults who want to understand themselves more deeply, untangle long‑standing patterns, and build steadier emotional footing. My ideal clients are reflective, open to slowing down, and ready to work through challenges rather than bypass them. I’m a good fit for people navigating anxiety, Attention‑Deficit–related concerns, identity questions, body dysphoria–related issues, or self‑esteem struggles rooted in self‑criticism.
Person-centered (Rogerian)
I use Person-Centered Therapy to create a space where clients feel safe leading the conversation. My role is to reflect, support, and stay attuned to what feels meaningful to you. Sometimes that includes constructive self-disclosure, such as sharing a brief example from my own experience to normalize a feeling or reduce shame. For instance, if a neurodivergent client says “I always mess up deadlines,” I might gently share that I also use color-coded systems and visual cues to support executive functioning. It’s not about shifting focus. It’s about modeling self-compassion and showing that adaptation is valid. You set the pace and I follow with warmth, respect, and transparency.
Acceptance and commitment (ACT)
I use ACT to help clients make space for hard thoughts without getting stuck in them. For LGBTQ2+ and neurodivergent clients, this often means working with beliefs like “I’m not doing it right” or “I feel broken.” We notice those stories, clarify your values, and take steps that feel meaningful even when things are uncomfortable.
Compassion Focused
I take a collaborative, emotionally attuned approach that helps clients understand the patterns shaping their inner world. I use Supportive Therapy to strengthen coping, reduce distress, and create a grounded space to explore shame, internalized criticism, identity‑related concerns, and the pressures that come from high expectations or past experiences. I also incorporate simple body‑based grounding skills—like tapping—to support regulation and presence as clients navigate difficult emotions. This version keeps the Therapy Approach section focused on how you work, while your bio holds the lived‑experience context that informs your lens. Would you like this even shorter, or does this feel like the right balance?
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I use CBT to help clients notice stuck thought patterns and shift them with practical strategies. As someone who lives with a disability and grew up with a disabled father, I understand how constant criticism can shape beliefs like “I always ruin things.” Together, we slow down, explore where those thoughts come from, and build kinder, more accurate ways of thinking that support growth.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I use DBT techniques to help clients feel more steady in the chaos. We build skills to manage intense emotions, set boundaries, and stay in the here and now when things feel overwhelming. Whether you're navigating relationship stress, big transitions, or just trying to cope day to day, we practice tools like mindfulness, meditation, and emotional regulation to support clarity, self-respect, and healthier ways to respond. I often use the feeling wheel to help clients name what they’re experiencing, even when it feels like “nothing.” Numbness is a feeling too, and recognizing it can be the first step toward reconnecting with emotion, language, and self-awareness. You don’t have to do it perfectly. You just have to start.
16 ratings with written reviews
November 5, 2025
I chose to work with Liz because she had many overlaps in her specialties and what I needed. I also liked how clear her profile was and I think that carried over into our session. She is keeping me in the loop about exactly what she is doing and is looking to do. Plus, I am included in the plan!
October 10, 2025
She connected with me by even putting some of her stories in our conversation and it felt good to talk to her i felt real comfortable.
October 7, 2025
I think for the first time, I feel like someone is listening with interest and focus