- Practical skill-building
- Trauma-informed care
- Adoption and foster care
About Patricia
Patricia Sumlin is a licensed marriage and family therapist with 25 years of experience supporting adults through major life stresses. She focuses on practical steps to manage anxiety, depression, trauma-related symptoms, relationship strain, and challenges tied to adoption and foster care. Patricia aims to build a respectful, direct working relationship so people feel heard and taken seriously.
Her style is straightforward and grounded. She blends evidence-based methods with insight-oriented conversation and offers clear feedback and skill-building. Sessions emphasize emotion regulation, mindfulness, and tools to increase everyday coping and confidence.
Patricia has worked in many settings including outpatient clinics, residential programs, hospice, and community treatment in rural Alaska. That background informs a flexible, real-world approach to problems like addiction, grief, chronic illness, or caregiving stress. She has experience with diverse cultural groups, including Native American and Native Alaskan communities.
Clients can expect a collaborative plan that balances practical strategies and deeper exploration of patterns and attachment concerns. Patricia draws from methods such as cognitive behavioral techniques, acceptance and commitment ideas, attachment-based perspectives, and dialectical behavior concepts when they fit the goal.
Her aim is to help people build stability and skills they can use beyond therapy. She emphasizes honest communication, boundary setting, and steady progress toward personal goals.
How therapeutic approaches guide online care
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on helping people clarify what matters to them and take actions that match those values while learning to live with difficult thoughts and feelings. It can help with anxiety, depression, and coping with life changes. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relationships shape current patterns and focuses on building safer, more reliable ways of relating to others to improve relationships and reduce reactivity.Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. Patricia will work with each person to decide which methods fit their goals and strengths. She adapts techniques over time so sessions match what is helping most in day-to-day life.
If you are considering online therapy, confirm the available session options before booking since formats are not listed in the profile. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy schedule, reduce travel time, and allow for shorter or more focused check-ins when needed. It can also help maintain continuity of care during life transitions so people keep building skills without added logistical strain.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
25+ years
Credentials
California, Washington
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does she help with?
Patricia works with adults facing stress, anxiety, depression, trauma and related issues such as addiction, grief, and relationship strain.
What is her therapeutic style like?
Her style is direct and practical, combining insight-oriented conversation with skill training for emotion regulation and mindfulness.
How much experience does she have?
She brings 25 years of clinical experience across outpatient clinics, residential programs, hospice, and community mental health settings.
What credentials and region are listed?
She is an LMFT, licensed in California as CA LMFT and Washington as WA LMFT LF, and practices out of Washington.
Which languages are supported?
Sessions are offered in English.
What session formats are available?
The original profile does not specify session formats; please confirm current session options before booking.
How is cost handled?
Fees vary by location and therapist availability; 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 according to therapist availability.