Sharmaine Whitten
Compassionate, practical therapy for life transitions
LMFT California
- Experience
- 5 years in practice
- Focus areas
- Stress, Anxiety, Relationship, Grief
- Approaches
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Languages
- English
About Sharmaine
Sharmaine Whitten is a licensed marriage and family therapist who focuses on helping people navigate stress, anxiety, depression, grief, and relationship challenges. With five years of clinical experience working in California, she creates collaborative treatment plans shaped to the individual’s needs and life circumstances.
Background and approach
Sharmaine emphasizes respect, sensitivity, and compassion while supporting people through life changes such as divorce, pregnancy and childbirth, and moments of loss. Her practice addresses practical concerns like panic attacks, communication problems, guilt and shame, and questions about life purpose and self-love.
Sharmaine integrates evidence-informed methods such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), the Gottman Method, and Solution-Focused Therapy to tailor sessions around what each client finds most helpful. She encourages clients to take the first steps toward greater wellbeing and partners with them to build skills, clarify values, and pursue meaningful change.
CBT and Emotion-Focused Care Online
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps identify and shift unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviors, offering practical skills for managing anxiety, panic, and depressive symptoms. Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT) focuses on understanding and working with emotions to improve connection and communication in relationships and to process grief or shame. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) encourages noticing difficult thoughts and feelings while clarifying personal values and taking committed action toward a meaningful life.
Finding the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. Sharmaine works collaboratively with clients to choose methods that align with their goals, preferences, and life circumstances, adapting techniques over time as needs evolve. This collaborative stance aims to make therapy both relevant and practical for each person.
Online sessions are offered through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to provide flexibility for different schedules and comfort levels. These options make it easier to maintain continuity of care during life transitions and to practice skills between sessions, while allowing clients to access licensed professionals from their preferred location.
Frequently asked questions
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Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
5+ years
Licensed
California
Languages
English