Dorothy Pedro , LCSW

Dorothy Pedro is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with 25 years of clinical experience who combines practical problem solving with compassionate support. She draws on extensive work in acute care settings, where she helped people and families navigate grief, trauma, suicide risk, and life-changing illnesses, and on community work that included a school-based homeless program providing meals, counseling, home visits, and resource coordination. Dorothy applies critical thinking and motivational interviewing to help clients in chaotic situations set realistic goals and create plans to reach them.

She has worked with military families and children, coordinated with schools, courts, and child protective services, and provided couples, family, and group counseling. Parenting-skills work is a regular part of her practice, and she values learning from parents while offering practical tools. Much of her family intervention is informed by systems theory - an approach that looks at family strengths and patterns and seeks indirect routes to change that can produce positive, ripple effects across relationships.

Dorothy emphasizes teamwork with clients, holding the safety and wellbeing of families and children as central. She tailors support from brief, focused interventions to more intensive work depending on where a family or individual is in their process. If a different resource would be more helpful, she will guide clients to an appropriate referral. Dorothy practices in Arizona and conducts therapy in English, offering compassionate, strengths-based care for issues including addiction, grief, parenting, trauma, anxiety, relationship and family concerns, and life transitions.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Care

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps clients clarify personal values and take small, committed steps toward a meaningful life despite difficult thoughts or feelings. It is useful for anxiety, stress, grief, and motivation-related challenges.

Attachment-Based Therapy focuses on relationships and early patterns that shape how people connect with others. It can be especially helpful for issues like abandonment, family conflict, intimacy concerns, and relationship repair.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) offers practical strategies to identify and shift unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors, which often reduces symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress and supports goal-directed change.

Finding the right approach is part of the collaborative process. Dorothy works with each client to explore which methods fit their needs, goals, and preferences, adjusting techniques as progress unfolds so therapy remains useful and focused.

Online therapy with video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging provides flexibility for clients with busy schedules, caregiving responsibilities, or limited local options. These formats make it easier to maintain momentum between sessions, attend therapy from home, and access consistent support across life transitions while working with licensed professionals who tailor care to individual circumstances.