Penelope Surber, LMHC

Penelope Surber is a licensed mental health counselor with eight years of direct experience helping adults recover from trauma and navigate difficult life changes. She combines practical tools with a warm, person-centered style to help people manage stress, anxiety, depression, and addiction-related concerns. Penelope focuses on clear, respectful communication and tailors work to each person’s situation.

Before licensure in Florida, she spent six years working as an adult trauma therapist at a recovery center. In that role she supported people dealing with relationship strain, career stress, mid-life transitions, grief, and the aftereffects of childhood abuse. She has particular experience with abandonment and attachment issues, codependency, and problems that come from family-of-origin dynamics.

Her sessions are interactive and grounded in everyday language. She uses Client-Centered methods to follow a person’s lead and Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to teach skills for regulating emotion and changing unhelpful thinking. Jungian ideas also inform deeper exploration of meaning when clients want that.

Penelope aims to avoid stigmatizing labels and treats people with empathy and respect. Her work often includes practical coping strategies, communication practice, and steps to rebuild confidence after trauma or difficult life events. She helps people set achievable goals and checks in on progress.

She encourages anyone ready to take a step toward change to reach out. The first session is used to identify priorities and begin a plan that fits the person’s pace and needs.

Approaches that guide online work and skill building

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on following the person’s concerns and creating a respectful, empathic space. It helps people feel heard and clarifies what they want to change. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at patterns of thinking and behavior and teaches concrete skills to reduce anxiety and depression symptoms. Dialectical Behavior Therapy, DBT, emphasizes emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness skills useful for intense emotions and relationship struggles.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Penelope will collaborate with each person to choose which methods to use based on their goals, needs, and preferences. She often mixes skill-based work with deeper exploration as clients request it.

The practical benefits of online therapy include easier scheduling and fitting sessions into a busy life. Many people find that remote sessions let them keep consistent appointments during work or caregiving demands and reduce time spent traveling. The biography does not list specific session formats, so confirm current session options before booking to know how sessions will be delivered. Licensed professionals can adapt CBT and DBT skills effectively in remote sessions, focusing on tools and practice that translate into everyday routines.