Barbara Pettibone, LCSW, CSW
Colorado · 46 years in practice
Barbara Pettibone is a licensed clinical social worker who helps people facing major life changes and persistent emotional struggles.
License and registration
- LCSW, Colorado
- CSW.00001879 · expires August 2027
- NPI
- 1275136947 · national provider identifier
- Years in practice
- 46
- Languages
- English
Details are as listed on the therapist's public professional profile. You can check the license with the issuing state board, and the NPI with the national registry.
About Barbara
Barbara Pettibone is a licensed clinical social worker who helps people facing major life changes and persistent emotional struggles. She has worked in mental health for decades and brings a calm, straightforward presence to sessions. She focuses on common concerns like stress, anxiety, grief, depression, relationship and intimacy issues, parenting challenges, and coping with aging and health changes.
She also supports people dealing with trauma, anger, low self-esteem, career transitions, and mood disorders such as bipolar conditions.
Background and approach
Barbara draws on several approaches to tailor care to each person. She uses Emotionally-Focused Therapy to look at patterns in close relationships and attachment-based ideas to help people understand how early bonds shape current reactions. She also works with client-centered methods and practical behavioral tools when they fit the situation.
Her style is honest, warm, and direct. She expects the person in therapy to lead the process while offering clear guidance and steady support. Sessions can include grief work, mindfulness exercises, behavioral skill-building, and exploration of values and goals.
Barbara’s background includes inpatient psychiatric hospital work and many years in outpatient settings. She has particular experience helping older adults navigate loss, health concerns, and relationship shifts, though she works with adults across the lifespan. Her long career gives her a wide range of strategies to draw on.
People who prefer a collaborative, respectful approach may find her practical and reassuring. She invites new conversations about goals and next steps and helps people make plans that match their daily life and needs.
Focus areas and approaches
Everything Barbara lists on their public professional profile, in their own terms.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Depression
- Coping with life changes
- LGBT
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Intimacy-related issues
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Coaching
- Abandonment
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Impulsivity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Personality disorders
- Post-traumatic stress
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches Barbara names
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Existential Therapy
- Jungian Therapy
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Somatic Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
- Internal Family Systems
- Systemic Therapy
Naming an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each therapist lists and does not check training records.
Online support
Approaches and how online therapy can help
Barbara often uses Emotionally-Focused Therapy to identify interaction patterns that cause pain in close relationships and to help people shift toward more supported emotional connections. This approach can be useful for people who struggle with intimacy, attachment worries, or recurring conflicts.She also applies Attachment-Based Therapy ideas to trace how early relationships shape current responses. That work helps people recognize long-standing patterns and try new ways of relating. In addition, she uses Client-Centered Therapy, which prioritizes the person's perspective and supports self-directed change through empathy and practical feedback.
Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and what feels most helpful. Together they try methods and adjust as needed so the work fits the person's life and rhythm.
Online therapy formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video sessions suit in-depth conversations and face-to-face connection, while phone sessions can work when bandwidth is limited or when a shorter check-in is needed. Live chat or messaging lets people send quick updates, ask questions between sessions, or use text when a session without video is preferred. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, caregiving, or health-related schedules.
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Questions people ask
What concerns does she address?
She helps with stress, anxiety, depression, grief, trauma and relationship or intimacy issues, plus parenting, career concerns, and age-related changes.
What is her therapeutic style?
Her style is warm and direct, with collaborative goal-setting and a mix of insight, mindfulness, and behavioral work based on each person's needs.
How much experience does she have?
She has 46 years of experience in mental health, including inpatient psychiatric hospitals and outpatient practice.
What credentials and location are listed?
She is a Clinical Social Worker with credentials LCSW and CSW and practices from Colorado.
Which languages are supported and can she work internationally?
Sessions are offered in English and she accepts international clients.
What session formats are available?
Sessions can be held by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging.
How does cost work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule sessions according to therapist availability.
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