Amy Carnes
Calm, practical guidance for life changes
LMFT Wisconsin
- Experience
- 11 years in practice
- Focus areas
- Relationship, Grief, Parenting
- Approaches
- Gottman Method, Client-Centered Therapy
- Languages
- English
About Amy
Amy Carnes is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) who focuses on helping people handle painful changes and stressful periods. She aims to make the first steps feel manageable and clear.
Background and approach
Amy uses straightforward language and a calm approach so clients know what to expect. She brings 11 years of clinical experience and a Master of Science in Psychology from California Polytechnic State University.
Amy is licensed in Wisconsin and California. Her clinical interests include relationship concerns, grief and loss, parenting challenges, anxiety, depression, trauma, and addiction-related problems.
Amy blends humanistic, client-centered listening with practical tools from cognitive behavioral therapy. She also draws on the Gottman Method, motivational interviewing, and solution-focused techniques when they fit a person’s situation.
The goal is to shape therapy around each person's needs rather than force one method. In sessions she offers clear explanations and collaborative planning.
People can expect to talk through current struggles, try skills that reduce stress, and set small goals that build forward momentum. Amy pays attention to attachment patterns, caregiver stress, and feelings like guilt or shame that get in the way of recovery.
Her experience includes supporting people through hospice and end-of-life concerns, postpartum and pregnancy-related issues, divorce and separation, and substance use challenges. Amy welcomes questions about how therapy will work and helps clients pick approaches that match their priorities.
How therapy methods translate to online care
Client-centered therapy focuses on listening and building trust through empathy and acceptance. Online sessions let the therapist reflect what matters to the client and help people feel heard while they describe what’s hard and what they want to change.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, uses clear exercises and skill practice to change unhelpful thinking and behavior patterns. That approach works well online because homework, worksheets, and short skills practice can be shared and reviewed between sessions.
The Gottman Method contributes practical tools for improving communication and managing conflict. When relevant, Amy may introduce Gottman-informed exercises to help people notice interaction patterns and try new ways of relating.
Finding the right approach is a collaborative effort. The therapist will talk with each person about goals, try methods that seem likely to help, and adjust plans based on what feels useful. Clients and the therapist decide together which strategies to keep or change.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and screen sharing for worksheets. Phone sessions use less bandwidth and can be easier on busy days. Live chat and text messaging are useful for short check-ins, quick coaching, or working through a coping skill between appointments. These options make therapy more flexible and easier to fit into daily life.
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Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
11+ years
Licensed in
Wisconsin, California
Languages
English