JANETTE BERNE, LPC, RPT

Seeking an experienced, qualified, and caring therapist is a very personal choice and an important step for your path of well-being. If you’re looking for a therapist who brings both deep clinical experience and genuine compassion, Janette Berne, LPC, RPT, offers a trusted, skilled, and supportive space for healing and growth. With over 35 years of experience working with children, teens, adults, and families, she combines proven therapeutic approaches with creativity, insight, and empathy. Whether you're navigating anxiety, parenting challenges, challenges for children and teens, trauma, relationship issues, neurodiversity, or simply seeking greater self-understanding, Janette meets you where you are—with warmth, wisdom, and a commitment to helping you move forward. Her clients often say they feel safe, seen, and empowered in her care. Therapy with Janette isn’t just about managing symptoms—it’s about building a more connected, meaningful life.

Janette is not only a seasoned clinician, she is also a respected educator and leader in the mental health community. She has given professional presentations to other Licensed Mental Health Practitioners on working with children, families, and adults. Recently, she was interviewed on a podcast about coping strategies for neurodivergent gifted adults. Her diverse background allows her to connect with a wide range of individuals, including professionals, parents, and highly sensitive adults seeking clarity and direction. As a member of the University of Florida's Department of Psychology Advisory Board, Janette remains engaged with current research and emerging best practices. Whether you're navigating stress, identity issues, past trauma, or just need support during a life change, Janette brings experience, insight, and compassion to every session.

Janette is also an advocate, seasoned practitioner, and an expert in her field. She has testified in court as an expert witness on Child Development and Psychology, bringing her expertise and experience in working with children and families to represent to the court age-appropriate development and family dynamics.

CHILD COUNSELING

For children under 10, Janette offers play therapy. She holds the Registered Play Therapist (RPT) credential, meaning she attained specialized training and supervision post licensure. The title Registered Play Therapist is overseen by the Association for Play Therapy (APT). Janette has designed a special area at Atlanta Center for Wellness that is dedicated for play therapy.

Why Play Therapy?

Play is the natural means of expression for children. With logical and critical thinking developing in adolescence, play therapy is a developmentally appropriate therapeutic method for clients under 10. Play therapy has been widely studied scientifically and has been found to be effective in treating a wide variety of issues.

Forms of Play Therapy

While there are dozens of forms of play therapy, Janette focuses on using Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) and Prescriptive Play Therapy when working with younger clients. Child-Centered Play Therapy is humanistic in nature. The emphasis is on the relationship between clinician and child and there is a wide range of acceptable behaviors and activities. Children are given a great deal of agency and freedom, so it tends to produce deep and long- lasting change. In CCPT, the playroom is stocked with carefully selected toys to optimize the potential for self expression and growth.

Prescriptive Play Therapy requires that the therapist be well-trained and well-versed in a variety of modalities like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and behavior modification. Prescriptive Play Therapy involves the use of board games, books, and therapeutic art activities to help clients heal.

Straightforward and complex issues can be addressed in play therapy. Some of them include:

• ADHD
• Adoption
• Anxiety
• Acting-out behaviors
• Defiance
• Depression
• Divorce recovery
• Family issues
• Grief and loss
• Internalizing behaviors
• Lying
• Selective mutism
• School refusal
• Socialization difficulties
• Transitions
• Trauma (abuse, medical, natural disasters, neglect)

By combining child-centered and prescriptive play therapy, Janette can tailor her approach to meet the specific needs of your child and family.

TEEN THERAPY

Today’s teens are under more pressure than ever before. Social media, academic stress, questions around identity and sexuality, popularity, and navigating neurodiversity, all of these can leave your teen feeling overwhelmed and isolated. Janette understands what today’s adolescents are facing, and she knows how to help. As a mother herself, and with decades of experience as a school counselor, crisis counselor, and social skills instructor, Janette connects with teens in a way that’s both compassionate and effective. She has worked extensively with at-risk youth and brings a calm, creative presence to the therapy room. Using expressive arts, CBT, and DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy), she helps teens manage emotions, reduce anxiety, build confidence, and communicate more openly.

FAMILY THERAPY

For over 35 years, Janette has been a trusted guide for families across the Atlanta area, helping them strengthen their relationships, navigate challenges, and build lasting emotional health. She brings a depth of clinical skill grounded in both experience and empathy. Janette believes that every family functions as a dynamic unit, and that healing happens when each member feels seen, heard, and valued.

Family therapy can feel daunting for many parents and children. Sessions are often intense, and emotions run high. It’s during these times that Janette exhibits her natural ability to create a safe, relaxed environment where families feel at ease. She is known for making sessions engaging and fun. Whether it’s through a collaborative art project, a therapeutic game, or simply making space for honest conversation, she helps families connect in meaningful, creative ways. Her warmth and non-judgmental presence invite trust and openness from even the most hesitant clients.

Janette has had the privilege of training under some of Atlanta’s most respected therapists and continues to pursue advanced learning with passion. She approaches her work with a strong growth mindset, always open to new insights and evidence-based practices that can benefit the families she serves. Known for her creativity, compassion, and ability to bring calm to even the most chaotic family dynamics, Janette believes that a happy, functional family is one of life’s greatest rewards... and every parent’s deepest hope.

PARENTING

Janette offers compassionate, practical support to parents who want to build stronger, more respectful relationships with their children. Drawing from her training in Positive Parenting (a program rooted in Adlerian theory) she helps parents understand their child’s behavior, set realistic expectations, and respond with guidance instead of punishment. Janette believes in the power of encouragement, consistency, and natural or logical consequences to foster responsibility, confidence, and emotional growth in children.

In the early 1990s, Janette developed the Positive Parenting Program for the Gwinnett Children’s Shelter, a program that continues to serve families to this day. As a school counselor, she taught these parenting strategies to families directly and supported parents in applying them to everyday school and home challenges. She also led seminars on digital safety, helping parents understand how to protect and guide their children in today’s online world.

Janette has taught these principles to countless parents over the years, including foster parents and caregivers in high-stress environments. She has also raised her own children using the same techniques and understands both the rewards and challenges of parenting firsthand.

Janette blends clinical knowledge with real-life wisdom to support families in meaningful and lasting ways. Her approach helps parents feel empowered—not judged—and gives them practical tools to connect, redirect, and raise resilient children.

ADULT INDIVIDUAL THERAPY

Janette offers adult clients a safe, nonjudgmental space to explore life’s challenges and create meaningful change. She has worked with adults in both community mental health settings, such as the Henry County Mental Health Center, and in private practice, supporting individuals through anxiety, trauma, life transitions, neurodivergence, grief, and relationship issues. Known for her deep empathy and calming presence, Janette helps clients feel heard and understood while also guiding them toward growth and healing.

Janette is a seasoned therapist who will bring her 35-plus years of experience and expertise to each client in a thoughtful and sensitive manner. She is a kind, caring, and non-judgmental person who wants to work on your behalf to create a plan for your well-being. She understands that reaching out for assistance is an important step in a wellness and healing journey, and she values the journeys of her clients seeking assistance in whatever challenges they address.

>Listen to "The Power of Play for Gifted Adults" with Janette Berne on the Someone Gets Me podcast!