Carey Alvord , LMFT

Carey Alvord is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) practicing in California with 23 years of professional experience. She focuses on attachment, developmental trauma, and the dynamics of parent-child relationships, bringing deep experience working with families across diverse caregiving situations.

She specializes in supporting biological, foster, adoptive, and relative parents who are committed to attachment-based parenting, and she also works with teens and adults seeking to understand how childhood loss and trauma shape their attachment patterns. Her practice emphasizes thoughtful assessment of whether her background will best serve each client's needs.

Carey aims to create an environment that balances emotional safety with clear structure so that thoughts and feelings can be expressed without fear of judgment. Her clinical work draws on a range of therapeutic methods tailored to the client and family, including the targeted use of EMDR when appropriate, Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, the Neurosequential Model, mindfulness techniques, Theraplay, Experiential approaches, and REST, a method she developed.

Recognizing that reaching for more fulfilling and happier relationships requires courage, she offers steady support and collaborative guidance for those ready to take the next step toward healing and connection.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Support

Carey integrates Attachment-Based Therapy to explore how early relationships influence current patterns of relating, helping parents, teens, and adults heal from developmental disruptions and strengthen emotional bonds. She also uses Mindfulness Therapy to teach present-moment awareness and stress management tools that support regulation and reduce reactivity in relationships. In addition, Dialectical Behavior Therapy - DBT - is employed when emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness are central concerns, offering concrete skills to manage intense feelings and improve communication.

Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. Carey works with clients to identify their goals, preferences, and most pressing needs, then adjusts methods over time so therapy remains responsive and practical. Licensed professionals and therapists often blend techniques to match each person's unique situation.

Online therapy options such as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging provide flexibility for busy families and individuals who need different ways to connect. These formats make regular care more accessible, allow sessions to fit varied schedules, and support continuity of work on attachment, trauma, parenting, and stress-related concerns.