Online Individual Therapy for Adults in Oklahoma
Paula Sophia Schonauer, LCSW (she/her)
Meet Paula Sophia
Who I am
I retired from the Oklahoma City Police Department in 2014 after 22 years. Before that I served in the United States Army as a commissioned officer, including Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm. I have an MSW and an MFA in Creative Writing, and I have published two books, a novel and a short story collection.
I am a trans woman and a member of the LGBTQ+ community, with over two decades of activism and advocacy at the local, state, and national levels. I have worked with political leaders to advance LGBTQ+ rights, and I have taught about the transgender experience in affirming churches, state agencies, police departments, and community groups.
I am also a trauma survivor and a passionate advocate for self-determination. I have a wealth of human experience that helps me connect with people whose lives look nothing alike.
How I work
First of all, I am a person-centered therapist.
I meet people where they are, as they are.
I work conscientiously to hold a nonjudgmental attitude and unconditional positive regard. I use Rogerian skills to build and keep rapport, and I bring in CBT, ACT, DBT, TEAM CBT, CPT, Narrative, and Feminist approaches depending on what the work actually needs.
I value authenticity, autonomy, and self-determination. I respect the dignity of every human being. I hold sacred what people share with me in session. Feedback I get is that I am warm, relatable, and caring, and that I bring my full attention to what someone brought me. What I can offer is a calm and accepting space to explore what matters, process what happened, and say the things out loud.
Who I work with
I have had my greatest success with transition age adults, college students, and teens. I am especially interested in working with LGBTQ+ people who are trying to understand their identities and figure out how to live inside them day to day. Queer, nonbinary, gender diverse, cisgender, transgender, two-spirit. Veterans and first responders. People carrying religious trauma. People sorting out vocational questions and family of origin patterns.
Mostly, the people I work with fear that they are unlovable. They want acceptance and esteem, and they are convinced they are inadequate and unworthy. They fear rejection, so they suppress who they actually are in exchange for being tolerated. It shows up as anxiety and depression, as perfectionism, as feeling socially inept or personally insignificant, as no room to move inside prescribed roles and narrow expectations.
What I want for them is self-acceptance, better management of their emotions, and the tools to question their own thoughts before they obey them. I want them to succeed in relationships, find their place in the community, and put their talents toward the greater good.
Off the clock
I ride bicycles. You may see me on the streets of Oklahoma City and on the trails around the metro. I am a spoken word performer, a slam poet, and an improv enthusiast. I have two grown children and a granddaughter who is two.
What she is open to
Currently accepting new clients.
- Where. Online anywhere in Oklahoma and Hawaii. In person in the Paseo Arts District in Oklahoma City.
- When. Mornings, midday, and early evenings on weekdays, plus Saturday mornings. She does not book afternoons.
- Cost. Self-pay while her credentialing clears. $125 individual, $155 relationship, sliding scale available for individual therapy.
- Who. Individuals, couples, and families. Adults.
Who she is for
Two rooms that do not usually share a therapist.
One is the queer kid from a small Oklahoma town, working out whether it is safe to be honest anywhere. The other is the cop three years off the job who cannot sleep and will not say why.
Paula Sophia has been in both rooms. She spent 22 years with the Oklahoma City Police Department and two decades advocating for LGBTQ+ people in this state, and she did not do those things in sequence. She did them at the same time, in the same body, in the same city.
If you have ever felt like you had to leave part of yourself at the door to be welcome somewhere, that is the part she wants to hear about.
Twenty-two years with the Oklahoma City Police Department. Two decades of LGBTQ+ advocacy. The same person, the whole time.
Verified & Trusted
My Areas of Focus:
- LGBTQIA+ Affirming Therapy
- Gender Identity and Gender Diverse Care
- Identity, Vocation, and Life Direction
- Religious and Spiritual Trauma
- Trauma and PTSD
- Anxiety and Depression
- Veterans and Military
- Law Enforcement and First Responders
- Couples and Relationships
The Types of Therapy I Use:
- Person-Centered (Rogerian) Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- TEAM CBT
- Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
- Narrative Therapy
- Feminist Therapy
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Skills
- Brief Solution Focused Therapy
- Family Therapy
- Couples and Marriage Therapy
- Faith-Based Counseling
- Culturally Sensitive Therapy
- Group Therapy
Credentials & Training
My Professional Qualifications:
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Oklahoma and Hawaii
- Master of Social Work, University of Oklahoma
- Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, University of Central Oklahoma
- Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, Southwestern Oklahoma State University
- Contributor, Handbook of Forensic Social Work, Oxford University Press
- Author of the novel Shadowboxer and the short story collection Dirty Laundry
- Retired, Oklahoma City Police Department, 22 years of service, Master Sergeant
- United States Army veteran, commissioned officer, 2nd Lieutenant to Captain, Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm
- Presenter on gender diversity, Oklahoma Social Work Summit, 2021 through 2025
- Two decades of LGBTQ+ advocacy at the local, state, and national levels
- Group facilitation including process groups, DBT rehabilitation groups, LGBTQ+ community building groups, and debriefing groups
Online across Oklahoma and Hawaii. In-person sessions in the Paseo Arts District in Oklahoma City.
Are you searching for the TLDR version of what I offer? Look no further!
Here are some good old fashioned bulleted lists to help you find the important info:
Insurance & Billing
Self-pay for now. Insurance soon.
Paula Sophia is completing credentialing with our insurance panels. Until that clears, sessions with her are self-pay.
- Sliding scale is available. Ask.
- We tell you what a session costs before you book anything. In writing, no surprises, no guessing.
- Would rather wait and use your insurance? Tell us, and we will let you know the moment her credentialing clears.
Already carrying insurance you want to use? The rest of the clinicians here are in network with most major plans. See who takes what.
Ask about self-pay with Paula SophiaCommon Questions
Questions people ask me:
Are you taking new clients right now?
Yes. Paula Sophia is open and accepting new clients, online across Oklahoma and Hawaii and in person in Oklahoma City.
Her schedule runs mornings, midday, and early evenings Monday through Friday, plus Saturday mornings. She does not book afternoons. If that is inconvenient we would rather tell you now than after you have filled out three forms.
Do you take my insurance?
Not yet. Paula Sophia is completing credentialing with our insurance panels, so sessions with her are self-pay until that clears. Sliding scale is available, and we will tell you what a session costs before you book anything.
If you would rather use your insurance, the other clinicians at Ala Therapy Collective are in network with most major plans. See who takes what. If you want to wait for Paula Sophia specifically, tell us and we will let you know the moment her credentialing clears.
Can I see you in person, or is this online only?
Both. Paula Sophia sees clients online anywhere in Oklahoma and Hawaii, and she offers in-person sessions in the Paseo Arts District in Oklahoma City. She is the only clinician here who does in-person in Paseo.
Reach out and we will tell you what is open and where.
I live in Hawaii. Can you actually see me?
Yes. Paula Sophia is licensed as a clinical social worker in Hawaii as well as Oklahoma, so she can see you by telehealth anywhere in the state. She is one of only two clinicians at Ala Therapy Collective licensed there, and the one currently accepting new clients.
More on how that works: therapy in Hawaii.
I am a veteran, or I work in law enforcement. Will you actually get it?
Paula Sophia retired from the Oklahoma City Police Department in 2014 after 22 years, at the rank of Master Sergeant. Before that she was a commissioned officer in the United States Army, retiring as a Captain, and she deployed for Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm. She has spent years since then talking with police departments about community policing.
You will not have to explain shift work, or a bad call, or why it does not stay at work.
What happens after I reach out?
You fill out the contact form and someone here gets back to you. Because Paula Sophia is self-pay for now, there is no insurance to verify, so we will tell you what a session costs and what she has open, and you decide from there.
If she turns out not to be the right fit, we will say so and point you somewhere better, here or elsewhere.