About Colleen
Colleen Tretton is a licensed professional counselor who helps people who are worn down by anxiety, stress, depression, trauma, or struggles with addiction and intimacy. She writes plainly and listens carefully to understand what feels stuck. Colleen focuses on small, practical steps that lead to real change rather than quick fixes.
She often starts by helping people notice how their body and mind respond to stress. That makes it easier to name feelings and manage strong reactions.
Background and approach
Colleen uses grounded techniques to reduce overwhelm and improve sleep, mood, and connection with others. Her approach blends talk-based tools with mindful awareness and body-centered work. Clients learn skills to handle panic, social anxiety, shame, and relationship pain.
She also addresses family of origin issues, attachment wounds, codependency, and the fallout from sexual assault and abuse. Colleen draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, mindfulness practices, solution-focused tools, and somatic methods. These give concrete ways to shift thinking, regulate emotions, and notice bodily signals that matter.
She adapts methods to what each person needs in the moment. With nine years of experience, Colleen aims to create a steady, compassionate pace for change. She encourages realistic goals and practices that fit daily life.
People who come to her often want to feel safer in their bodies, clearer about relationships, and more able to move forward.
Therapeutic approaches and online care
Colleen commonly uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Mindfulness Therapy to help people notice unhelpful thoughts and change patterns that keep problems going. CBT focuses on identifying thought and behavior patterns and testing them with small experiments. Mindfulness Therapy teaches simple attention and breathing practices to reduce reactivity and bring steadier mood and focus.She also integrates Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills when emotions feel intense and hard to manage. DBT skills give concrete tools for emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and improving communication during conflicts. Together these approaches aim to build practical skills people can use between sessions.
Finding the right mix of approaches is a collaborative process. The therapist will work with the client to pick techniques that match their goals, comfort level, and daily routine. Progress is shaped by trying methods, checking what helps, and adjusting the plan over time.
Online therapy with Colleen is available by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging. Video sessions let people practice skills in real time. Phone sessions use less bandwidth and can fit a break during the day. Live chat and text messaging offer shorter check-ins and can make it easier to share when not on camera. These options aim to make therapy more flexible and accessible for different schedules and needs.
Questions people ask
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What is her therapeutic style like?
How much experience does she have?
What are her credentials and where is she based?
Which languages are offered for sessions?
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What session formats are available?
How does payment and getting started work?
What this counselor works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Relationship issues
Also listed
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 9 years
- Licensed
- Arizona
- Languages
- English