LGBT therapists in Knoxville, TN

Working on yourself is the most important work you will ever do. I believe we are all in this life together, and we all need a little help sometimes. I want to be the person who helps you. We will discover, together, what goals are most important to you, we will then work on building the tools to help you change your life. It may not be easy at times, but that is why I'm here to guide you. I've got your back. We will do this by working on possible traumas, anxieties, or other road blocks that need to be examined and broken through. I'm here to help adults of all ages and gender, as well as couples to make the most of their life.

I have experience working with children, adolescents, adults, and families. I treat a wide range of mental health challenges including anxiety and stress, mood disorders, trauma, depression, coping with chronic illness, military family life, and life transitions. I have 30 years of working with service members, families and support system members.

I’m a therapist based in Memphis who works with high-achieving women navigating anxiety, burnout, identity transitions, and complex relationship dynamics. Many of my clients are successful on the outside and exhausted on the inside. They are often the responsible one, the strong one, the reliable one — and quietly overwhelmed.

My work is grounded in Internal Family Systems (IFS), an evidence-based model that helps clients understand and heal the different “parts” of themselves — the driven part, the critical part, the anxious part, the part that feels unseen. I am Level 1 trained in IFS and integrate attachment-informed and trauma-responsive care into my practice.

Hi, I'm Dr. Deborah DeFrieze, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with more than 15 years of experience helping people work through anxiety, stress, trauma, grief, depression, and life's hardest transitions. If anxiety or overwhelm has been running the show lately, I'm here to help you take the reins back — with a warm, honest, and practical approach.

My path to this work has been a rich one. Alongside my social work career, I spent 33 years in public education — as a teacher in both regular and special education, an assistant principal, a principal, and an assistant professor — and I served as a missionary in Africa for 18 months. Those experiences taught me to meet people where they are, across every walk of life and stage of change. I hold a Master of Social Work from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and a doctorate in education from the University of Georgia, and I'm also a Licensed Massage Therapist, which deepens my appreciation for the mind-body connection in healing.

I draw on evidence-based approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), EMDR, and Solution-Focused Brief Therapy, tailoring our work to what will help you most.

As a Licensed Professional Counselor, I'm committed to providing a safe and nonjudgmental environment for exploring pathways to psychological and emotional healing. Specializing in Dialectical and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, I believe everyone is worthy of love and happiness. I encourage people to see themselves through that same lens.

I'm a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist (LMFT) and Board Certified Hypnotherapist based in Madison, TN, with 16 years in practice. I hold a Master's in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University and am a certified hypnotherapist through the National Guild of Hypnotists. I'm also an AAMFT Approved Supervisor, so I train and supervise other clinicians in addition to seeing clients myself.

I work with adults and families around addiction, trauma and PTSD, and impulse control disorders, along with anxiety, low self-esteem, mood disorders, OCD, relationship issues, and compulsive or disruptive patterns. Hypnotherapy and Internal Family Sytems are my favorite modalities.

I offer both in-person sessions (at Watershed Wellness Cooperative in Madison) and telehealth, with daytime, evening, and weekend availability.