Ann Gavin, LMFT • Online Therapy Across Iowa
Online Therapy for Adults Across Iowa
Warm, practical support with room to talk about anything.
Ann provides full-time telehealth counseling for adults navigating grief, parenting, major life transitions, anxiety, and the effects of difficult experiences. Her style is warm and nurturing, but also direct—helping you understand what is happening, see the situation from more than one angle, and practice responses that give you more choice.
100% online • Adults 18+ • Available statewide in Iowa • 319.320.7506
EFIT • Solution-Focused • IFS-Informed • Trauma-Informed • Faith-Sensitive When Desired
Adults 18+ • Online Therapy • Grief & Loss • Parenting • Life Transitions • Anxiety • Statewide Iowa
Practical details
A few things to know before you reach out.
Format: Ann works exclusively by telehealth
Who she sees: Adults age 18 and older; her practice is primarily individual therapy
Where: Online counseling for clients located anywhere in Iowa
Additional licensure: Ann is also licensed in Minnesota; please ask our scheduling team to confirm current availability and insurance eligibility before booking
Primary focus: Grief and loss, parenting, major life transitions, anxiety, emotional growth, and processing difficult or traumatic experiences
Faith integration: Faith can be incorporated when it is meaningful to you; it is never required
Couples and families: Ann may work with select couples or family concerns, but her online practice is primarily focused on adults in individual therapy
More than a place to vent
Therapy can help you see the situation differently.
Therapy with Ann is not limited to sharing how you feel. She helps you slow the situation down, understand what your emotions may be trying to communicate, and look at the problem from more than one perspective.
Sometimes feeling stuck comes from seeing only one path forward. By widening the lens, learning how your emotions work, and noticing the part you can influence, you may begin to feel less helpless and more capable of responding intentionally.
The goal is not to blame yourself for everything that is difficult. It is to help you recognize where you still have agency—and use it in ways that improve your own life and your relationships with the people around you.
Where I tend to do my best work
You want warmth, direction, and something useful to take with you.
Ann tends to connect especially well with adults who want a therapist who will be kind and accepting while also offering a little direction. Some clients come to therapy after growing up without the kind of steady, unconditional support they needed. Others are grieving, adjusting to a new stage of life, trying to become the parent they want to be, or simply tired of feeling overwhelmed.
She also works well with people who think analytically and want therapy explained in a way that makes practical sense. If you appreciate clear ideas, concrete skills, and a therapist who can challenge your assumptions without making you feel judged, Ann may be a strong fit.
Grief & Loss
Grief can change the way you experience yourself, your relationships, and the future. Ann brings both clinical experience and personal understanding of loss, offering a steady place to process what happened while finding ways to keep living meaningfully alongside what cannot simply be undone.
Parenting & Life Transitions
Parenting, empty-nest changes, shifting family roles, career changes, and other transitions can unsettle even people who usually cope well. Ann helps you understand the emotions underneath the transition, clarify what matters now, and adapt with greater confidence and compassion.
Anxiety & Emotional Growth
When worry, overthinking, or strong emotions leave you feeling stuck, Ann helps you understand what your brain and emotions are doing, widen your perspective, and build practical skills that make difficult moments feel more manageable.
About Ann
Nurturing, steady, direct—and never too late to become something new.
I became a therapist after my youngest daughter encouraged me to pursue the work and told me she thought I would be good at it. I applied to Mount Mercy’s marriage and family therapy program at 48 partly because I wanted to show her that it is never too late to become something new.
Clients often experience me as warm and nurturing. I have been told that my “mothering” presence is one of my strengths, especially for people who did not have a consistently supportive parent growing up. I also bring personal experience with grief and loss, which shapes the compassion I bring to people walking through major loss.
Outside of therapy, I enjoy college sports, cooking and baking, reading, and spending time outdoors biking, kayaking, and hiking. If faith is important to you, I am comfortable making room for it in therapy as part of understanding the values and beliefs that matter in your life.
How I think about therapy
Emotional maturity is something we can learn.
Most of us were never formally taught how emotions work, what purpose they serve, or how to respond to them without either being overwhelmed or shutting them down. I see therapy as a place to learn those skills.
My work draws primarily from Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT), Solution-Focused Brief Therapy, and IFS-informed language. I use these approaches to help you understand emotional patterns, separate from reactions that feel overwhelming, identify what is within your control, and practice different ways of responding.
I am also influenced by attachment research and writers such as Lindsay Gibson, Dan Siegel, Holly van Gulden, Charlotte Vick, and Stan Tatkin. The deeper aim is practical: more self-awareness, stronger emotional regulation, more compassion, and healthier ways of showing up in your relationships.
Slow it down
We identify what is happening emotionally and relationally instead of treating the feeling itself as the problem.
Widen the perspective
We look at the situation from more than one angle, question assumptions, and notice what may be keeping you stuck or powerless.
Practice a different response
We turn insight into usable skills so you can respond with more intention, compassion, and emotional maturity in everyday life.
“Most of us were never taught how to manage our emotions.”
Understanding what emotions are doing can make them less frightening and less overwhelming. The goal is not to stop feeling; it is to become more capable of feeling, understanding, and choosing how you want to respond.
What it feels like to work with me
Warm enough to feel safe. Direct enough to help you move.
I want online therapy to feel like a judgment-free place where you can talk about anything and know that you will be seen, heard, and reflected rather than criticized. I will spend time getting to know you and the system around your life so I can understand what is actually happening—not just the isolated problem that brought you in.
I am gentle and grounding, but I am also active in session. I may ask you to consider a different interpretation, challenge a belief that is keeping you stuck, or help you identify what you can change rather than remaining focused only on what other people are doing.
When it is useful, I may give you a skill, idea, or practice to try between sessions. The point is not homework for homework’s sake. It is to help therapy carry over into daily life so the work begins to create a ripple effect beyond the hour we spend together.
Who tends to connect well with me
You want a therapist who can be both nurturing and practical.
You may be grieving, parenting through a difficult season, entering a new stage of life, trying to understand anxiety, or working through the impact of experiences that still affect how you feel and respond. You want support, but you also want direction and a clearer way to think about what is happening.
You may also appreciate a therapist who can speak plainly, explain emotional ideas in concrete terms, and integrate faith when that matters to you. You do not need to have the answers before we meet. You just need some willingness to look honestly at the situation and consider what might be possible.
You want a little direction—not just a listener.
You appreciate a therapist who will help organize what is happening, offer another perspective, and give you practical ways to respond when you feel stuck.
You want warmth without avoiding difficult truths.
You want to feel accepted and emotionally safe, but you also value honest questions and gentle challenges that help you notice what you can change.
You want therapy to make sense in everyday life.
You like clear explanations, usable skills, and a therapist who can connect emotional work to parenting, relationships, faith, grief, work, and the decisions you face outside the session.
Adults 18+ • Telehealth Only • Statewide Iowa
A note about fit: Ann’s practice is entirely online and focused on adults age 18+. She does not see teens. Her practice is not the best fit for complex trauma that specifically requires EMDR, because she does not currently provide EMDR treatment by telehealth. Couples and family work are considered selectively because those formats can be more difficult online. If you are looking for in-person care or a specialty that is not the right match for Ann, our scheduling team can help connect you with another ICC therapist.
Ready when you are
You can begin from wherever you are—literally and emotionally.
Ann offers full-time online counseling so you can meet from a private, comfortable place without commuting to an office. If you are looking for a warm, direct therapist who can help you understand your emotions, see the situation differently, and build skills that carry into everyday life, complete the form and our team will help you take the next step.
100% online • Adults 18+ • Statewide Iowa • 319.320.7506
Book an Online Appointment with Ann
Complete the form below and our team will follow up with you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Before your first online appointment
Do you only offer telehealth?
Yes. My practice is fully online, so I am a good fit for adults who prefer the convenience and privacy of telehealth. If you want in-person therapy, our team can help you find another ICC therapist.
Who do you work with?
I primarily work with adults age 18 and older in individual therapy. I may work with select couples or family concerns when telehealth is an appropriate format, but those are not the primary focus of my practice.
Where can I be located for an online session?
I provide telehealth to clients located anywhere in Iowa. I am also licensed in Minnesota; please contact our scheduling team to confirm current availability and insurance eligibility before scheduling from Minnesota.
What concerns do you commonly work with?
My strongest areas include grief and loss, parenting, major life transitions, anxiety, and processing the effects of difficult or traumatic experiences. I also help clients build emotional awareness, healthier coping skills, and more intentional ways of responding in relationships.
Can faith be part of therapy?
Yes, if that is important to you. I am comfortable incorporating faith and spirituality into therapy when you want it to be part of the conversation, but it is never required.
What is therapy with you like?
Warm, calm, direct, collaborative, and practical. I want you to feel safe enough to talk about anything while also knowing I may ask difficult questions, challenge a belief, or help you consider a different perspective when that could help you move forward.
What therapy approaches do you use?
I primarily draw from Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT), Solution-Focused Brief Therapy, and IFS-informed language, along with attachment and trauma-informed ideas. I do not currently provide EMDR treatment for complex trauma by telehealth.
Will you give me things to work on between sessions?
Sometimes. When it is useful, I may suggest a skill, reflection, or practice to try between sessions so the work can carry into everyday life. The goal is practical growth, not giving you assignments just for the sake of homework.
What happens in the first appointment?
I will ask questions to get to know you, understand the people and systems around your life, and learn what you hope therapy can help with. We may also begin looking at the situation from a different perspective so we can identify where change may be possible.
You can talk about anything here.
Ann wants therapy to be a judgment-free space where you can be seen, heard, and reflected. You do not need to arrive with everything figured out. If you are ready for a warm, practical conversation about what is happening and what could change, online therapy may be a good place to start.