Nicole Guessford, LCSW

Nicole Guessford is a licensed clinical social worker who helps people facing stress, anxiety, parenting concerns, grief, and changes from illness or caregiving. She offers a direct, structured style and gives practical tasks to try between sessions. Nicole emphasizes self-care and self-compassion while tailoring conversations to each person's situation.

She is licensed in Pennsylvania and Virginia and brings 23 years of professional experience to her work. Her practice supports people dealing with trauma and abuse, relationship strain, mood challenges such as depression and bipolar concerns, and problems with sleep, eating, or self-esteem. Nicole also addresses issues like compassion fatigue, ADHD, and chronic pain or illness.

Her approach blends several evidence-informed methods, including acceptance and commitment techniques, attachment-based work, client-centered listening, cognitive-behavioral strategies, and skills from dialectical behavior approaches. Sessions are structured and collaborative, with clear goals and homework when helpful.

Nicole focuses on practical steps clients can use between visits. She often assigns exercises to help people practice new ways of coping, communicating, and managing emotions. The work is intended to be active and goal-oriented while remaining sensitive to each person’s pace.

She conducts telehealth sessions only, consistent with insurance requirements. People considering therapy are encouraged to note the telehealth-only format and to review insurance details when deciding to move forward.

How therapeutic approaches translate to online care

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people notice painful thoughts and feelings without getting stuck in them, then take steps that match their values. It is useful for anxiety, stress, and coping with health challenges. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relationship patterns affect current connections and emotion regulation, which can help with intimacy issues, caregiving stress, and relationship conflict. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and behaviors and practicing different, more effective responses; it is often used for anxiety, depression, sleep, and eating concerns.

Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will collaborate with each person to choose methods that match their goals, needs, and preferences. Sessions can shift over time as progress and priorities change.

Nicole provides telehealth sessions only, so online work is the standard way she offers care. Confirm the exact session options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy schedule, reduce travel time, and allow people to meet from different locations within the therapist's service area. They also support regular weekly or bi-weekly check-ins and allow the therapist to assign and review between-session exercises that reinforce skills learned in sessions.