Janet Plankenhorn, LMFT
Compassionate practical therapy for life changes
About Janet
Janet Plankenhorn offers straightforward, compassionate support for people facing stress, anxiety, grief, and life changes. She introduces a calm, nonjudgmental space where someone can talk about what’s worrying them and start to notice unhelpful patterns.
Background and approach
Janet is a licensed marriage and family therapist in California with 12 years of professional experience, and she focuses on practical steps that fit into daily life. Janet helps clients untangle relationship tensions and parenting strain by listening closely and asking clear questions.
She uses concrete tools to manage anger, improve self-esteem, and navigate career or role changes. Sessions are aimed at small, achievable shifts that add up over time.
Her approach blends client-centered listening with methods drawn from cognitive behavioral therapy and solution-focused work. That means she pays attention to what matters most to the client, looks at how thoughts and behaviors interact, and helps set short-term goals to try out between sessions.
Conversations are collaborative and down-to-earth. Janet describes the therapy room as a place to practice new responses to old problems.
She helps people break big issues into manageable steps and track progress along the way. Many clients appreciate having clear options and simple tools to use outside of sessions.
To begin, Janet asks new clients to complete a short questionnaire and then schedule a session that fits their calendar. Therapy is offered through multiple session formats so people can choose what feels most workable for them.
How Janet’s Approaches Work Online
Client-centered therapy starts with careful listening and prioritizing what matters most to the client. In practice this means sessions focus on the client’s experience and goals, with the therapist reflecting back concerns and asking questions that clarify what change would look like.Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts and behaviors feed each other. It offers simple, practical exercises to test unhelpful thoughts and try new behaviors between sessions, which can reduce anxiety and lift mood over time.
Solution-focused therapy zeroes in on small steps that move someone toward their goals. Sessions often end with a short experiment or a specific next step so progress can be tracked week to week.
Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the work. Janet collaborates with each person to decide which methods fit their needs, goals, and preferences. She adjusts the balance of listening, skills practice, and goal-setting as the relationship develops.
Online formats - video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging - make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life. Video allows face-to-face conversation, phone sessions work when bandwidth is limited, live chat can be used for quick check-ins, and messaging supports short reflections or coaching between appointments. These options give flexibility so someone can sustain therapy around work, school, or family commitments.
Frequently asked questions
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
Also works with
- Anger management
- Career difficulties
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Grief
- Parenting issues
- Self esteem
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 12 years
- Licensed
- California
- Languages
- English