Now welcoming therapy clients in North Carolina

This time is yours. Let's make it matter.

Therapy for the people who give everything, and are ready to have someone in their corner.

Now welcoming therapy clients in North Carolina

A woman with light brown hair and glasses standing outdoors next to green foliage, wearing a denim shirt and black pants.

This time is yours. Let's make it matter.

Therapy for the people who give everything, and are ready to have someone in their corner.

Anxiety

Caregiving

Aging Parents

Grief

Becoming

Burnout

• Anxiety • Caregiving • Aging Parents • Grief • Becoming • Burnout

A woman stands alone in an open field, back to the camera — representing the burnout and emotional exhaustion that brings mission-driven professionals, caregivers, and those navigating aging parents to therapy in North Carolina.

You have spent so much of yourself showing up for others. This is for you.

Maybe you chose work that means something and have given it everything.

You have spent your career giving everything to work that matters. And somewhere along the way, your own needs got pushed to the back of the list. Maybe you are the person everyone leans on and cannot remember the last time someone asked how you are doing and actually waited for the answer. Maybe you are holding a career and aging parents and children all at once, and wondering when you lost the thread of yourself somewhere in the middle of it. Maybe you are a woman, a person of color, a first-generation professional, an LGBTQIA+ leader, someone Jewish navigating the complexity of that identity in social justice spaces, a new parent whose world quietly shifted, a highly sensitive person who has spent years being told that is too much.

I have spent a long time in rooms with people who carry exactly this. I understand the terrain, the stakes, and the particular exhaustion of doing work that matters while quietly wondering when it gets to be your turn. Therapy is where we finally make space for that question, together.

In our work together we start with your story. We go slowly, we go deep, and we follow whatever is most alive for you. Nothing is too much to bring into the room. You will not have to explain yourself from scratch. And you will not be doing any of it alone. Available virtually in North Carolina, and in person in Durham.

How we work together

My approach is integrative, which means I draw from a range of modalities and weave them together around what you specifically need. At the center of that work are Internal Family Systems (IFS), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), CBT, somatic approaches, and a feminist, systems-aware lens that keeps the world you are operating in firmly in the picture.

A person sits at ease with a warm drink, reflecting the self-compassion and inner curiosity cultivated through IFS therapy for trauma, anxiety, and the weight of caregiving.

Understanding All Your Parts

We get curious about the parts of you that have been working hardest, and what they actually need.

A woman works at a laptop in a calm space, representing the high-functioning professionals seeking virtual therapy in North Carolina for work-related stress and burnout.

The World You’re Working In

The pressure, the politics, the emotional labor of your work. None of it gets left at the door. It all belongs in the room.

A tissue box on a warm wooden surface, symbolizing the emotional release at the center of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for anxiety, grief, and burnout.

Making Room for What's Hard

Instead of pushing through or around the hard things, we learn to make room for them. And then figure out what you actually want to move toward.

A man sits with eyes closed and hand on chest in a somatic therapy exercise, practicing body-based healing and nervous system regulation.

What Your Body Already Knows

A lot of what we carry lives below the neck. We slow down and learn to listen to what your body has already been trying to tell you.

A therapist writes attentive notes, representing the warm, collaborative intake process where client history and patterns begin to take shape.

What to Expect

We begin with a brief introductory call, just a chance to get a feel for each other before anything is official. From there we move into an intake session and spend the first few sessions building relationship and an understanding of your present experience, a picture of your history, your patterns, and the relationships that have shaped you. It is often where the most important insights begin.

From there we design a plan together. A cadence and structure that fits your life, your goals, and the way you work best.

What you can always count on: nothing is rushed, and nothing is too much to bring in.

Sessions designed around what you need

A woman stands alone in an overcast landscape, capturing the introspective work of individual therapy for professionals navigating burnout, caregiver stress, aging parents, and life transitions.
  • This is the core of the work. We meet one on one, go at your pace, and follow whatever is most alive for you. Most clients start here and build from there.

    50 minutes | Virtual | North Carolina | $160

  • Some conversations need more room. Extended sessions are for moments when 50 minutes is not enough, including intake sessions, periods of transition, or times when something important is surfacing and you do not want to stop.

    90 minutes | Virtual | $250

  • Sometimes the work calls for more than a weekly hour. Intensives are deep-dive experiences designed for clients navigating a major transition, breakthrough, or moment that deserves real time and space. They can be structured as a standalone experience or woven into ongoing work.

    Multi-hour | Virtual | Contact me for pricing and availability

  • There is something that happens when you do this work in community. Small, intentional groups organized around shared identity, life stage, or focus. Details on current and upcoming groups coming soon.

    Small group format | Contact me to be added to the interest list

A limited number of sliding scale spots are available for clients for whom standard fees present a genuine barrier. Reach out and we will figure it out together.

For insurance, superbills, and payment details, see the FAQs.

Under the No Surprises Act, you have the right to receive a Good Faith Estimate of expected costs before beginning services. I provide this to every client before our work begins, so you always know what to expect. You can find the full details on my Good Faith Estimate page.

GOOD FAITH ESTIMATE

About Mollie

The person on the other side of the screen

Mollie Stephens, licensed therapist and founder of Matter Collaborative, offering virtual IFS therapy and trauma-informed care in North Carolina.

I became a therapist because I believe that some of the most important work any of us can do happens on the inside. Understanding who you are, where you came from, and what has quietly been shaping your choices all along. That is the foundation everything else gets built on. And it is the work I am most honored to do.

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Work Associate (LCSWA) and the founder of Matter Collaborative. I spent 20 years inside public sector and mission-driven organizations before opening my clinical practice, and I bring all of that with me into the therapy room. I understand the culture, the pressure, and the particular exhaustion of doing work that matters. My clients do not have to spend the first few sessions explaining that landscape. We can get straight to what is underneath it.

My approach is warm, direct, and collaborative. I will follow your lead and I will also name what I notice. I believe therapy works best when it feels like a real relationship, and building that is always my first priority. I work with clients navigating anxiety, trauma, burnout, depression, grief, life transitions, caregiver stress, and the weight of holding aging parents and children while trying to hold yourself together too. I also work with clients navigating the particular weight of identity and belonging. I am a sex-positive and kink-aware therapist, and I welcome clients for whom that context matters.

I hold a dual MSW and MPP from UCLA and a BA from Cornell. I also teach at UCLA's Luskin School of Public Affairs.

Ready to take the first step?

I would love to hear from you.

FAQs

Things people often want to know

  • Our first sessions move at the pace of trust. We will spend time getting to know each other, building a genuine connection, and understanding your present state and history in the way that feels safest to you. Depending on your preference, our first sessions may be relational, or include formalized tools like a family map, a way of looking at your history not just as names and dates but as a living story of patterns, cultural forces, and relationships that live in you today. Nothing is rushed or one-size-fits-all. We are at your pace.

  • There is no one-size-fits-all answer. The length of our work together depends entirely on what you are bringing and what you want to accomplish. Some clients come with a specific challenge and find meaningful resolution in a few months. Others are interested in deeper, longer-term exploration. We will design a treatment plan together and revisit it regularly to make sure our work continues to feel purposeful.

  • For therapy, yes. My clinical license requires that therapy clients be located in North Carolina. I currently offer virtual sessions, with in-person availability in Durham coming in the future. For coaching and consulting, I work with clients anywhere in the US.

  • Matter Collaborative is a private pay practice, meaning I do not bill insurance directly. This is an intentional choice that protects your privacy and ensures our work is guided by your needs, not an insurance company's requirements. I am happy to provide a superbill upon request, which you can submit to your insurance provider for potential out-of-network reimbursement. If cost is a barrier, I reserve a limited number of sliding scale spots. Reach out and we will figure it out together.

  • I require at least 48 hours notice for any cancellation or rescheduling. Late cancellations and no-shows are charged the full session rate. That said, I know that life does not always follow a schedule. Genuine emergencies are always handled with care, and every client receives one courtesy cancellation per calendar year. My hope is that we hold this container together with mutual respect, clear communication, and grace for the moments when we need it.

  • All payments are processed through Sessions.

  • Email is always the best place to start. I respond to all emails within a week and will do my best to get back to you sooner if I can. For full details on how I communicate outside of sessions, including response times and what to do if something urgent comes up, visit my communication policy page.

  • I keep my caseload intentionally small so that everyone I work with gets my full presence. If I'm not available when you reach out, you're welcome to join my waitlist — and I want you to know that reaching out at all takes something, and I don't take that lightly.

    Waitlist spots are held in the order they're received. When space opens up, I'll email you to confirm you're still interested and schedule your complimentary connection call. You'll have 48 hours to respond before the spot moves to the next person.

    In the meantime, I'll do my best to point you toward resources that might be helpful while you wait.

    To join the waitlist, fill out the short intake form here.