Stephen Murphy

Stephen Murphy is a licensed clinician with ten years of experience helping people manage stress, anxiety, anger, and major life changes. He holds LICSW and LCSW-C credentials and practices with a straightforward, compassionate style. Stephen focuses on practical steps people can use right away to feel steadier and more capable.

He listens first to understand what matters most to each person. Sessions emphasize clear goals and simple skills that fit daily life. Stephen often helps clients notice patterns that fuel reactive behavior and then practices alternatives that reduce conflict and regret.

His background includes work with mood disorders, addictions, trauma, grief, and identity concerns. He draws from cognitive behavioral ideas to change unhelpful thoughts, and from acceptance and commitment approaches to clarify values and build committed action. He also uses attachment-based methods to address relationship patterns and client-centered techniques to keep sessions focused on the client’s priorities.

Stephen takes a practical, down-to-earth approach to therapy. He helps people build routines, set boundaries, and practice coping tools between sessions. The focus is on skills that make everyday life feel more manageable.

People who want direct feedback, clear coping strategies, and a therapist who will collaborate on realistic goals tend to fit his style. He works with a wide range of concerns and supports people in Maryland and beyond as they navigate change and move toward more steady functioning.

How therapy approaches guide online work

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people name what matters and commit to small steps that match those values; it’s useful for stress, anxiety, and navigating life changes. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on changing the thoughts and behaviors that keep problems going, and it often includes clear exercises to practice between sessions. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relationship patterns show up now and helps people build different ways of relating when old patterns are causing conflict or distress.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will listen to your goals, try a few approaches, and adjust what’s used based on what helps most. This is a collaborative process where your needs and preferences shape the plan.

The therapist’s biography does not specify particular online formats, so confirm current session options before booking. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, reduce travel time, and allow for shorter check-ins when a quick progress update is needed. It can also let people practice new skills in real-life settings and then talk about what happened right after. Licensed professionals can adapt ACT and CBT exercises to work well in remote sessions, focusing on tools that clients can use between meetings.