James Gilligan, LCSW

James Gilligan, LCSW, helps people facing stress, anxiety, grief, addiction, and trauma and abuse. He brings direct, practical support for everyday struggles like sleep problems, anger, relationship strain, and low self-esteem. He has two decades of clinical work and aims to help clients make real changes in their lives.

James completed a Master’s degree in social work from Florida International University in 1998 and became licensed in Florida in 2000. Early in his career he provided individual and group therapy in Miami-Dade schools. He later worked with people experiencing severe mental illness, including bipolar disorder and major depression.

Beginning in 2007 he served active duty military clients, focusing on marital concerns, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and domestic violence issues. He has also worked with people affected by dysfunctional family systems and the traumas those systems leave behind. Addictions and eating disorders are additional areas he addresses.

James uses a mix of approaches in clinical work. He draws on attachment-based ideas, client-centered methods, cognitive behavioral strategies, dialectical behavior tools, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing. He also applies motivational interviewing skills when helping people consider change.

Sessions aim to be straightforward and goal-oriented. Clients can expect collaborative planning, clear coping strategies, and attention to patterns that come from earlier relationships. He works with clients to build skills that fit into daily life and to move toward goals they name together.

Approaches that translate to online work

Attachment-Based Therapy helps people look at how early relationships shape current reactions and closeness. Online sessions can use this approach to identify patterns and practice new ways of relating. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, focuses on the links between thoughts, feelings, and behavior and teaches clear skills for managing anxiety, depression, and sleep or eating problems. Sessions often include homework and skill practice between meetings. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, known as EMDR, is used for trauma and aims to reduce the emotional charge of distressing memories; elements of EMDR can be discussed and planned in online meetings before any in-person steps are considered.

Choosing the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and what feels most helpful. Together they decide which methods to try and adapt those methods as progress is made.

The biography does not list which session formats are used, so please confirm current options before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into busy schedules, reduce travel time, and allow shorter check-ins when needed. It also lets people practice skills in real daily settings and bring immediate concerns into sessions for problem solving.