Stephen Creel, LMFT

Stephen Creel is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) practicing in California with 24 years of experience. He works with adults facing stress, anxiety, addictions, trauma and abuse, depression, relationship and family concerns, grief, parenting challenges, anger, and life changes. Stephen draws on his long clinical background to help people untangle stubborn patterns that get in the way of daily life.

Before training as a therapist he worked as a musician in Hollywood. That early career exposed him to high highs and low lows, and to the frustration of a dream not panning out. Those experiences shaped his interest in recovery and in helping others manage loss, disappointment, and shifting identity.

Stephen’s day-to-day approach is collaborative and straightforward. He treats therapy as two people working together to identify what’s wrong and how it can be addressed. He pays attention to the beliefs people hold about themselves - ideas like not being good enough or not being wanted - and helps clients question and change those beliefs.

He has worked in rehabilitation settings and private practice supporting recovery from substance use and process addictions, as well as trauma-related problems, mood disorders, panic, and post-traumatic stress. He also helps with parenting strain, caregiver stress, codependency, communication problems, and career or midlife transitions.

Stephen uses practical methods drawn from Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, EMDR, Motivational Interviewing, and Trauma-Focused Therapy to guide sessions. He helps people build clearer thinking, better coping skills, and steadier relationships so daily life feels more manageable.

How Stephen’s approaches translate to online work