- Warm listening
- Practical steps
- Collaborative goals
About Cristina
Cristina Spataro is a New York State licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) with 18 years of experience supporting people facing stress, anxiety, depression, relationship strain, and major life changes. She helps people who are dealing with grief, trauma, addictions, parenting challenges, and issues around intimacy and self-esteem. Her work is practical and straightforward, aimed at helping clients make clearer choices and feel steadier in day-to-day life.
Cristina uses Client-Centered Therapy to create a respectful, listening-focused space where a person's own goals guide the work. She also draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to help identify unhelpful thinking and build new habits that reduce distress. Sessions focus on concrete steps and honest conversation rather than labels or jargon.
Over nearly two decades Cristina has supported people through crises and also earlier, preventive care. She emphasizes collaboration and will help people find ways to manage caregiving stress, midlife transitions, career uncertainty, and the strain of communication problems. She also addresses issues related to adoption and foster care, abandonment, and compassion fatigue.
Sessions are offered in English and take place from her New York practice. Cristina encourages prospective clients to consider therapy as a process of steady work and small changes rather than quick fixes. She aims to help people feel more able to face decisions and regain a sense of purpose.
To begin, she invites people to reflect on what matters most, bring those concerns to a first conversation, and look together at practical next steps toward more manageable days.
How Cristina’s approaches translate to online therapy
Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and following the person's goals. In practice this means the therapist creates time to hear what matters most, reflect back what she hears, and let the client steer the agenda. This approach helps when someone needs space to sort out values, relationships, or feelings.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) looks at the links between thoughts, feelings, and actions. It uses short exercises and practical experiments to test unhelpful beliefs and build new routines that reduce anxiety or depression. This method is useful for specific problems like worry, low mood, and behavior patterns that keep a person stuck.
Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the work. The therapist will talk with each person about goals and preferences, try approaches that fit those goals, and adjust the plan together. This keeps the process collaborative and focused on what helps most.
Confirm session options before booking so you know how sessions are scheduled. Online therapy can make it easier to fit appointments into a busy life, reduce travel time, and allow for shorter check-ins when needed. Talk with the therapist about how to shape sessions so they work with your daily routine rather than create extra strain.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
18+ years
Listed in
New York
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does she help with?
Cristina supports people with stress, anxiety, depression, relationship and family struggles, grief, trauma, addictions, parenting strain, career questions, and related challenges such as ADHD and compassion fatigue.
What is her therapeutic style like?
She blends a listening-centered approach with practical techniques. Sessions emphasize being heard and then working on clear, manageable steps to change thinking and behavior.
How much experience does she have?
She has 18 years of experience working with people in crisis and those seeking help earlier in their concerns.
What credentials and location are listed?
She is a New York State licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) based in New York.
Which languages are available for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can international clients work with her?
International clients are not currently accepted.
How are costs handled for sessions?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability, and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
What is the first step to begin working together?
Begin by selecting the Start Therapy button, completing a short matching questionnaire, and then scheduling according to therapist availability.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If you are in danger, use the crisis numbers.