Specialties

Counseling specialties, by video across Arkansas.

Perimenopause and menopause, EMDR, depression, anxiety, and relationships. Each one has its own page. Pick yours below.

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Telehealth across Arkansas
Adults 18 and over
Free 15-minute video consultation

The five specialties

Pick the one that sounds like you.

Each box opens a full page. Not sure which fits? Scroll on for a short summary of all five.

Perimenopause & menopause

Support for the mood swings and worry this season can bring.
EMDR therapy

One approach Kristen uses. It's best known for trauma and PTSD.
Depression

For when you feel flat and everyday things take everything you have.
Anxiety

For worry that won't switch off, day or night.
Relationships and couples

For couples and families having the same fight again and again.

Perimenopause and menopause

Support for the emotional side of menopause.

Kristen offers counseling for the part of perimenopause and menopause that's emotional, not hormonal.

Most of what you hear about perimenopause is physical. What brings people to therapy usually isn't: sleep that stops working, moods that swing further than they used to, anxiety with no clear reason. And it tends to land in a decade that's already full.

Kristen is a licensed professional counselor, not a physician. Hormones, symptoms, and treatment belong with your doctor. Your mood, your sleep, and your sense of yourself are what therapy is for.

Read the full page on perimenopause and menopause

EMDR

EMDR is one approach Kristen uses.

It's on her list of approaches, next to trauma-focused work, but it isn't all she does.

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It's a structured, widely researched therapy for memories that won't settle, the kind your body still reacts to as if they were happening now.

It's most often used for trauma and PTSD, and both are on her lists. It isn't right for everyone. Whether it fits your work is something you and Kristen decide together.

Read the full page on EMDR therapy

Depression

Depression doesn't always look like sadness.

It's one of Kristen's three main focus areas. It's also easy to mistake for a personal failing.

Often it feels flat instead. Ordinary things take real effort: getting up, answering a text. The people around you see someone coping, because coping is the part that still works.

In her words: "I specialize in working with adults and couples experiencing depression, anxiety, and trauma, offering a supportive and collaborative space to explore your feelings, heal past wounds, and build healthier patterns."

Read the full page on depression

Anxiety

Anxiety often looks like having it all together.

It's another of Kristen's three main focus areas, and it often shows up alongside depression.

From the outside it looks organized. Inside, it's checking twice, planning for a day that never happens, and rehearsing a conversation on the drive over so nothing can go wrong.

You don't need a diagnosis for it to count. Stress and work stress are on her list in their own right.

In her words: "Together, we'll uncover patterns, strengthen your sense of self, and develop tools to help you feel more grounded and connected."

Read the full page on anxiety

Relationships and couples

For couples, families, and you on your own.

Kristen works with adults only. You can come together or by yourself.

Most couples don't come in over the thing they're arguing about. They come in because the argument has a shape now: everyone sees it coming a week out, and nobody can stop it.

It goes beyond couples: family conflict, codependency, attachment, divorce, infidelity, and premarital counseling. Gottman, one of the approaches she names, was built for couples. She's LGBTQIA+ allied and sex-positive, and her Psychology Today profile names polyamory and ethical non-monogamy.

Read the full page on relationships and couples

Other areas

Other things Kristen can help with.

These aren't separate services. They come up often, and you can bring them into the same session.

Trauma and PTSD
Life transitions and adjustment
LGBTQIA+ and gender identity
Self-esteem
Work stress
Grief
Domestic violence and emotional abuse
Existential questions
College adjustment
Parenting
Pregnancy and postpartum

Don't see yours here? Bring it up in the free consultation and ask whether Kristen is a good fit.

How she works

Many approaches, not one method.

Kristen doesn't stick to one method. In her own words:

"I borrow from many different therapy modalities, as I do not believe in a one size fits all treatment. I pull from CBT, psychodynamic, attachment based, solution-focused, trauma-informed, DBT, somatic techniques, EFT, and Gottman therapies. You will leave therapy with a toolbox of coping skills."
Kristen I. Speer, LPC

What you come in with decides where you start, not which method you use.

Questions

Questions about choosing a specialty.

How do I know which one fits me?

You don't need to know before you reach out. Many people come in describing one thing and find something else underneath it. Sorting that out is part of the work.

Do couples come together or on their own?

Either works. Kristen sees adults on their own, as couples, and as families. Ask in the consultation which makes more sense for you. The relationships and couples page has more.

Are all sessions by video?

Yes. Every session is by secure video, for clients in Arkansas. There's no office to drive to, which for many people is what makes therapy possible at all. If cost is your first question, see insurance and rates.

What if more than one fits?

That's common. Anxiety and depression often show up together. A relationship can strain under a season of change. Sessions aren't split by topic, so you can bring all of it.

Free consultation

Talk with Kristen about what fits you.

Your first step is a free 15-minute consultation by video, or by phone if you would rather. It's a conversation, not a commitment.

Book an appointment