Ben H. Smith

Hi, I'm Ben, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 10 years of experience working with individuals, couples, teens, and families. I have a Master's in Marriage and Family Therapy and currently working toward my Certified Sexual Addiction Therapist credential (CSAT). My focus areas are trauma, addiction and recovery, anxiety, depression, grief, and relationship or family conflict. I also do a lot of couples work using the Gottman Method and Emotionally Focused Therapy. I've spent years running recovery groups, working in residential treatment, and building my own private practice. However you got here, I'd love to hear your story.

I try to keep things warm and real, therapy should feel like an honest conversation, not a lecture. I pull from CBT, DBT, EFT, and IFS depending on what fits you best, rather than sticking to just one method. With individuals I focus on trauma, addiction recovery, and anxiety or depression; with couples I lean into EFT and Gottman to help rebuild connection and communication; with families and teens I take more of a big-picture, systems view. Some clients want clear tools and homework, others just need space to process, and I'm happy to meet you wherever that is. My main goal is to always make sure you feel heard, not judged.

Your first session is basically just us getting to know each other, no pressure to have everything figured out beforehand. I'll ask about what brought you in, a bit of your history, and what's felt helpful or not so far. By the end, we'll usually land on a few goals to start with, whether that's calming anxiety, working through something from your past, or improving communication with a partner. I aim to keep the vibe relaxed and collaborative, since I think therapy works best when it feels like a team effort. We'll check in often and adjust the plan as we go, because it's always really about you.