Denise Thelander

Denise Thelander is a licensed independent social worker (LISW) practicing in Iowa. She brings three years of clinical experience to sessions and focuses on eating and food-related concerns alongside relationship, family, trauma and abuse, depression, and coping with life changes. Denise aims to create a calm space where people can talk through hard moments and start to make small, useful changes.

Her work is trauma-informed and includes body-based trauma therapy as a central element. That means she pays attention to how stress and past hurt show up in the body as well as in thoughts and behaviors. She helps people notice those reactions, name them, and build simple skills to feel steadier in daily life.

Denise also supports people dealing with communication problems, abandonment and attachment worries, body image concerns, caregiver stress, and chronic health challenges. She uses practical conversations and grounded exercises to address guilt, shame, control issues, and relationship strain. Sessions tend to be focused and paced to what each person can manage.

Clients who work with her can expect straightforward talk, gentle tracking of body responses, and step-by-step skill building. She brings a calm, matter-of-fact style and encourages people to set realistic goals. Much of the work aims to make everyday life more manageable and less overwhelming.

To begin, prospective clients follow the site process to match and schedule. Denise is available to people who speak English and she accepts international clients.

How trauma-informed and body-based work translates to online therapy

Denise uses trauma-informed practices and body-based trauma therapy as key parts of her work. Trauma-informed practice means paying attention to how past hurt affects current reactions and helping people regain a sense of safety in their daily routines. Body-based trauma therapy focuses on bodily sensations and movement alongside talk, helping people name physical responses and develop ways to calm or shift them.

These approaches are explored collaboratively. The therapist and client decide together which methods to try based on the client’s needs, goals, and comfort. That collaborative stance helps make sure techniques match what the person wants to work on and can be adjusted over time.

Because the original biography does not list which online formats are used, confirm session options before booking. In general, online appointments can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life, allow for shorter check-ins when needed, and remove travel time. They can also let clients practice grounding or body-awareness exercises where they live, and clients and therapists can agree on pacing and activities that suit each person’s situation.