I’m Rebecca Sotero, LCSW. I’m based in Jacksonville and I work with clients across Florida through secure virtual sessions.
I wanted to write this because it is a conversation I have all the time, usually on a consultation call, and usually with someone who has been meaning to do this for months. They tell me they opened a directory, scrolled through what felt like hundreds of profiles that all said something about a safe and non-judgmental space, and had no way to tell any of them apart. So they closed the tab, told themselves they would sort it out over the weekend, and then the weekend came and went.
If that sounds familiar, you are in good company. Looking for a therapist is a strange task, because the very thing that has you searching is often the thing that makes the search feel impossible. So here is how I would walk a friend through it, including how to figure out whether I am the right person for you or whether you would be better served by someone else.
Local Does Not Have to Mean In Person
A lot of people start their search assuming they need an office within driving distance. That narrows your options fast, and it filters out therapists who might be a much better fit.
What actually matters is that your therapist is licensed in Florida. That is the requirement. A therapist licensed here can work with you whether you are in Riverside, Ponte Vedra, or three hours away in Gainesville.
Virtual sessions also solve the problem most people run into after a few weeks, which is scheduling. No commute means a lunch break becomes a viable appointment time, and you are less likely to cancel when the day gets full.
That last piece is a big part of why my practice is built the way it is. The people I work with tend to be busy, responsible, and very practiced at putting themselves last. When therapy requires a forty minute round trip through Jacksonville traffic, it becomes the easiest thing to let go of during a hard week, and hard weeks are usually when you need it most. Taking the commute out of the equation removes one of the most common reasons people drift away from something that was helping them.
If being in the same room genuinely matters to you, that is a real preference and worth honoring. I would just encourage you to hold it as a preference rather than the first filter you apply, since it can quietly rule out a lot of good options before you have even looked at them.
Start With What Is Going On, Not With the Directory
Before you look at a single profile, it helps to get specific about what you want to work on. Not a diagnosis, just a plain description in your own words.
Maybe it sounds like not being able to stop overthinking, and it has started affecting your sleep. Maybe it is saying yes to everything and feeling quietly resentful about it. Maybe you are doing fine at work and coming apart everywhere else, or you have started dreading Sunday nights and cannot pinpoint when that began.
Naming it that plainly matters more than it seems like it should, because the words you search with determine who you find. Searching for a therapist in Jacksonville returns everyone practicing in the city. Searching for someone who works with burnout, boundaries, and people-pleasing or with anxiety and nervous system regulation brings you to people who spend their days on that particular work. Those two areas make up most of my caseload, so if that language sounds like your life, that is where I would point you first.
Who I Tend to Work Best With
I would rather be clear about this than try to be everything to everyone.
Most of my clients are high functioning and quietly worn out. They are the reliable one at work, at home, and among their friends. They handle things, and they handle them well, which is part of why no one thinks to check on them. Their mind does not shut off at night. They replay conversations and think about what they should have said. They feel responsible for outcomes that were never really theirs to carry. Most of them have been managing it on their own for a long time, and some have tried therapy before and left feeling like they talked in circles without much changing.
That includes a lot of high achieving professionals, a lot of people in helping fields like healthcare and education, and a lot of college students and recent graduates running into the first real wall of adult life.
There are also people I am not the best fit for, and I would rather say so here than have you find out in week three. If what you want is a therapist who mostly listens and reflects without offering much, my style will probably feel like more than you were looking for. If you are looking for a place to vent without any expectation that things will change, that is a completely legitimate thing to want, and there are therapists who do that beautifully. And if you need highly specialized or intensive treatment beyond outpatient care, you deserve someone whose training points directly at that.
Where to Actually Look
Psychology Today is still the largest directory and lets you filter by location, specialty, insurance, and session format. It is a paid listing rather than a ranking of quality, but it gives you the most complete picture of who is practicing in the area. If you are planning to use insurance, Headway and your insurance company’s own provider directory are both worth checking, though insurance directories are often out of date, so do not be discouraged by a few dead phone numbers.
Your primary care doctor can also refer you directly, and a referral from someone who knows your history carries information that a listing never will. Word of mouth works too, if there is someone in your life you trust enough to ask. Just keep in mind that a therapist who was perfect for your friend may not be the right fit for you, and that is not a reflection on either of you.
How to Read a Profile Without Getting Overwhelmed
A few things help separate signal from noise once you are actually looking at listings.
Pay attention to what someone leads with. A profile listing twenty-five specialties is usually telling you the therapist wants to be findable, not that they are equally expert in all twenty-five. Two or three focus areas described in real detail tells you much more about how that person actually spends their week.
Read the writing itself, too. Therapist profiles are written by therapists, so if the tone lands with you, that is genuine information about what an hour with them might feel like. If it reads as stiff or assembled from familiar phrases, that is worth noticing as well.
It also helps to understand the letters after someone’s name. LCSW, LMHC, and LMFT are all master’s level clinicians licensed to practice independently in Florida. PhD and PsyD indicate doctoral level psychologists, who can also conduct psychological testing. Designations like RCSWI and RMHCI mean someone is registered and working toward full licensure under supervision, which often comes with lower rates and, in my experience, a great deal of genuine skill alongside less independent experience.
For reference, mine are MA, MSW, LCSW, QS. I have been licensed in Florida for more than fourteen years under license number SW21063, and I serve as a Qualified Supervisor for registered social work interns. Any Florida clinician, myself included, can be verified through the Department of Health’s public license lookup. It takes about a minute, and I would encourage you to do it for anyone you are seriously considering.
Talk to More Than One Person
Most therapists offer a free consultation call. Mine is fifteen minutes. If you can, book two or three of them with different people.
A lot of my clients tell me this feels excessive, usually because they do not want to waste anyone’s time. Please know that you are not. That call exists precisely so both of us can figure out whether this is going to work, and I would far rather spend fifteen minutes on the phone than have you sit through three sessions being politely uncomfortable because you did not want to disappoint me.
Talking with more than one person also gives you something to compare against. It is genuinely hard to know whether a conversation felt right when it is the only one you have had.
What to Ask Me, or Anyone Else
It helps to go into that call with a few questions in mind. Not because you are interviewing someone for a job, but because the answers tell you a great deal in a short amount of time.
You might ask what kinds of clients they work with most often, or what a typical session actually looks like with them. You could describe what is going on and ask how they would approach it. It is very much worth asking how directive they are and whether they give you things to work on between sessions, since that is where most mismatches happen. You can ask how they know when therapy is working, how long clients usually stay, what their fee is, whether they take your insurance, and what their availability looks like, including whether they have lunch hour or evening slots. Pick the two or three that matter most to you and let the rest come up naturally.
If you were asking me, the short version is this. My sessions are direct but supportive, and structured but flexible. We look at the patterns underneath the stress, I spend time helping you understand how your brain and nervous system are responding to pressure, and we build skills you can use outside of the room. There is usually some laughing, occasionally a hard conversation, and always a focus on moving forward. My goal is not to keep you in therapy indefinitely. It is to help you get to a place where you no longer need me. If you want a fuller sense of how I work, you can read more about me here.
What to Notice While You Are Talking
The answers matter, and so does everything around them.
Notice whether they answered the question you actually asked or a nearby one, and whether they let you finish. When you described what has been going on, did you feel understood, or did you find yourself explaining it three different ways? Notice how you feel by the end of the call, whether you are a little more settled or a little more braced. None of that is a perfect measure, but it is real information, and most people know more than they give themselves credit for in those first few minutes.
Give It Enough Time to Tell
First sessions are not representative of much. You are nervous, we are covering history and paperwork, and a good portion of the hour goes to logistics. Judging fit from that one meeting is a little like judging a book by its copyright page.
Give it three or four sessions before you decide. By then you should be starting to notice a few things. You feel understood, even in the moments when someone says something you did not particularly want to hear. You leave with something to think about or try, rather than only a sense of having gotten things off your chest. They remember what you told them last time. The work has a direction, even if it is still coming into focus. And you can imagine telling them something you find embarrassing.
If instead every session feels like a recap and nothing seems to move, if you notice yourself managing their reaction rather than saying what you mean, if you feel judged or dismissed, or if weeks have gone by and you could not name what you are working on, those are worth paying attention to.
It Is Okay to Change Course
If it is not working, you are allowed to leave. You do not owe anyone a lengthy explanation, and you are not obligated to stay in a relationship that is not helping you simply because you do not want to hurt someone’s feelings. A short and kind message is more than enough. Something like deciding to go in a different direction, with thanks for their time, is a complete goodbye.
If you can name what was missing, most therapists genuinely want to know, and a good one will help you find someone better suited. But that is a kindness, not a requirement.
I would say this to my own clients and I mean it sincerely. Fit is the strongest predictor we have of whether therapy actually helps. Not connecting with one therapist does not mean therapy will not work for you. It means that particular pairing was not the right one, and finding the right person is not a hurdle before the real work begins. It is part of the work.
If the search itself is what keeps stalling, that is worth noticing too, and gently. For many of the people I work with, how hard it is to ask for help is closely related to the reason they need it in the first place.
Whenever You Are Ready
I work with clients across Florida through secure virtual sessions, and I am based in Jacksonville. If you want to figure out whether we are a fit, I offer a free fifteen minute consultation. No pressure, no commitment.
Reach out here and we will find a time that works.
Common Questions About Finding a Therapist
Do I need to find a therapist located in Jacksonville?
Not necessarily. What matters legally and practically is that your therapist is licensed in Florida, not that their office is close to your house. A Florida licensed therapist can work with you virtually anywhere in the state, which opens up your options considerably and tends to make the scheduling piece much easier to sustain over time.
How do I know if a therapist is actually licensed?
Florida’s Department of Health maintains a public license verification lookup where you can search any clinician by name and confirm that the license is active and in good standing. It takes about a minute, and I would encourage you to do it for anyone you are seriously considering, myself included. My license number is SW21063.
What should I ask on a consultation call?
A few questions tend to be the most useful. Ask what kinds of clients they work with most often, what a typical session actually looks like, and how they would approach the specific thing you are dealing with. It is also worth asking how directive they are and whether they give you things to work on between sessions, since differences in style are one of the most common reasons therapy stalls out. Practical questions matter too, including their fee, whether they take your insurance, and what their availability looks like.
How many sessions does it take to know if it is a good fit?
Usually three or four. First sessions are not very representative, since a good portion of that hour goes to history and logistics while you are also nervous. By the third or fourth session you should be feeling understood, leaving with something useful, and starting to sense a direction to the work, even if it is still taking shape.
What if it turns out not to be the right fit?
Then you are allowed to move on, and you do not owe anyone a long explanation for it. A short and kind message is plenty. Fit is the strongest predictor we have of whether therapy actually helps, so not connecting with one therapist does not mean therapy will not work for you. It means that particular pairing was not the right one.
Who do you work with?
Most of my clients are high achieving professionals, caregivers and people in helping fields like healthcare and education, college students, and young adults. The common thread is usually anxiety, burnout, difficulty with boundaries, people-pleasing, and the exhaustion that comes from being the person everyone relies on. My approach is warm and practical, and it is built around helping you develop skills rather than staying in therapy indefinitely.