Sharon (Shonnie) Brown, LMFT

Sharon (Shonnie) Brown is a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) with 30 years of practice in California. She helps people facing stress, anxiety, relationship struggles, grief, depression, life changes, and concerns related to aging and geriatric issues. Her style is direct and compassionate, and she often uses writing as a way to process emotions.

Sharon trained at the University of California, Berkeley and earned a master’s degree in counseling psychology from JFK University. Over three decades she has worked with individuals and couples and led groups on separation, divorce, infidelity, co-parenting, and social anxiety. Her experience includes supporting people through major life transitions and toxic workplace stress.

Her approach blends practical skills with attention to personal history. She draws on attachment-based ideas and client-centered methods to build a trusting relationship. Cognitive techniques and dialectical skills are used to change unhelpful thinking and manage overwhelming feelings.

Sharon also integrates writing exercises and mindfulness practices when helpful. She focuses on teaching coping skills, goal setting, and ways to increase self-compassion and self-protection. Many clients work on improving emotional regulation and learning to tolerate hard feelings.

She describes her work as honest and heart-centered, aiming to help people take small, steady steps toward change. If someone wants to begin, Sharon invites them to use the site Start Therapy flow to match and schedule a first appointment.

Therapeutic approaches and online care

Sharon routinely uses attachment-based ideas and cognitive behavioral strategies in her work. Attachment-based approaches focus on the ways early relationships shape emotional responses and help people build more secure ways of connecting. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) looks at unhelpful thought patterns and teaches practical skills to change thoughts and behaviors, which can help with anxiety, depression, and stress.

Choosing an approach is a collaborative process. Sharon will talk with each person about their needs, goals, and preferences and then recommend methods to try. She emphasizes trying small steps and adjusting approaches as needed so therapy fits the person rather than forcing a single method.

The biography does not list which session formats are offered, so please confirm available options when you book. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy life, reduce travel time, and allow shorter check-ins when schedules are tight. Licensed professionals can guide practical skill work, mindfulness exercises, and writing tasks between meetings to keep progress moving even when sessions are spaced apart.