Dawn Whitehead
Experienced LMHC combining skills and compassion
LMHC Rhode Island
- Experience
- 20 years in practice
- Focus areas
- Stress, Anxiety, LGBT, Trauma and abuse
- Approaches
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Languages
- English
About Dawn
Dawn Whitehead is a licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) in Rhode Island with two decades of clinical experience. She draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy alongside complementary methods to help people manage stress, anxiety, mood disorders, and depression, and she also addresses trauma and related symptoms.
Background and approach
Her background includes work with LGBT concerns and providing skills-based anger management support. Her approach balances practical strategies and compassionate listening, adapting each plan to an individual's circumstances and goals.
Dawn works with a broad range of difficulties such as grief, eating and body image challenges, impulsivity, obsessive-compulsive patterns, panic, and ongoing mood instability including bipolar concerns. Additional areas of focus include issues like abandonment, shame and guilt, isolation, and gender dysphoria.
Clients can expect a collaborative process that emphasizes respect and sensitivity while teaching concrete coping tools. She frames therapy as a partnership aimed at steady progress toward clearer thinking, improved emotional regulation, and better day-to-day functioning.
CBT, DBT, Mindfulness Online: Practical tools for daily life
Dawn integrates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help identify and change unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors, offering concrete strategies for anxiety, panic, mood regulation, and OCD-related challenges. She also uses Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills to focus on emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness when overwhelming emotions or impulsivity are present.Mindfulness-based techniques are woven into sessions to strengthen present-moment awareness and reduce reactivity, which can be particularly useful for trauma recovery, stress management, and persistent rumination. Together these approaches aim to combine skill-building with processing so the work feels practical and grounded in daily life.
Choosing the right approach is collaborative; Dawn will work with each client to determine which methods best match their needs, goals, and preferences. She tailors treatment plans rather than applying a single template, adjusting interventions as progress unfolds.
Online therapy options include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging, creating flexibility for different schedules and communication styles. These formats make it easier to access regular sessions, practice skills between meetings, and maintain continuity of care when in-person visits are not feasible.
Frequently asked questions
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Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
20+ years
Licensed
Rhode Island
Languages
English