About Athena
Dr. Athena Porter brings more than 21 years of clinical experience to her practice in Illinois. She holds a doctorate in Clinical/Community Psychology and an IL LCPC credential.
She helps people who are dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, trauma, addictions, and related concerns. Her work blends practical strategies with attention to each person's life story. Athena favors approaches that teach skills and explore meaning.
She often uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to identify unhelpful thinking and change behaviors.
Background and approach
She also draws on Dialectical Behavior Therapy tools for emotion regulation and mindfulness practices to reduce reactivity. Hypnotherapy and existential ideas appear when they fit a person's goals. Sessions are goal-oriented and grounded in everyday language.
She helps people develop coping plans, manage mood swings, reduce panic, and build healthier routines. She can also provide coaching-style support for career, parenting, and life transitions. Athena has worked in community settings across the United States and internationally, including outreach and public education on topics like suicide prevention, substance abuse, and disaster response.
That background informs her focus on multicultural concerns and community-level stressors. Her approach balances symptom relief with personal growth. She emphasizes practical techniques you can use between sessions and attention to values and meaning.
The work is collaborative and shaped by each person's needs.
Online approaches grounded in skills and meaning
Dr. Porter commonly uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy in online work. CBT focuses on identifying and changing thoughts and behaviors that keep problems going, which helps with anxiety, depression, panic, and mood issues. DBT includes concrete skills for managing intense emotions, improving distress tolerance, and building better interpersonal habits.She also integrates mindfulness practices to reduce reactivity and increase present-moment awareness. These approaches are explained in simple terms and practiced during sessions so people can try them between meetings. Choosing the right mix is a collaborative process: the therapist and client discuss goals, preferences, and what feels most useful, then adjust the plan as progress is made.
Online therapy formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video allows face-to-face conversation and guided skills practice. Phone sessions can be a good fit when bandwidth is limited or a camera feels uncomfortable. Live chat and text messaging work well for brief check-ins, homework support, or more frequent, lower-intensity contact. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, caregiving, or travel schedules, and they support different communication styles.
Questions people ask
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What session formats are available?
How are sessions scheduled and billed?
What this counselor works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Anger management
- Self esteem
Also listed
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Coaching
- Communication problems
- Coping with life changes
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Depression
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Midlife crisis
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Parenting issues
- Post-traumatic stress
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Relationship issues
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Trauma and abuse
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Women's issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 21 years
- Licensed
- Illinois
- Languages
- English