People-Pleasing Therapy for Women in Cincinnati, Ohio
On the outside, people-pleasing can look like kindness, reliability, and generosity.
On the inside, it can feel exhausting.
Online therapy available to clients in Ohio, Indiana, Florida, and Puerto Rico.
How do I know if I am a people pleaser?
You say yes when you want to say no.
You worry about disappointing other people.
You feel responsible for other people’s emotions.
You avoid conflict, even when something matters to you.
You apologize when you haven’t done anything wrong.
You give so much to others that you end up feeling drained, resentful, or unseen.
If you’ve ever wondered, “Why is it so hard for me to set a boundary?” you’re not alone in that struggle.
People-pleasing isn’t a weakness. These patterns can develop when keeping the peace, avoiding conflict, or focusing on other people’s needs feels important for maintaining connection.
In people-pleasing therapy, we can explore where these patterns may have come from, how they’re affecting your relationships today, and what happens when you begin making more room for your own needs.
I offer online people-pleasing therapy for women in Cincinnati and throughout Ohio, as well as Indiana, Florida, and Puerto Rico.
Why People-Pleasing Develops
Many women learn early on that being agreeable, helpful, and easy to be around can help keep the peace.
You may have learned that saying no created tension, that your needs were too much, or that keeping other people happy helped you feel more secure in your relationships.
Over time, these patterns can become automatic. You may find yourself putting your needs last, avoiding conflict, or feeling responsible for how other people feel.
Patterns that may have helped you maintain connection or avoid conflict can eventually leave you feeling anxious, exhausted, resentful, or disconnected from your own needs.
In people-pleasing therapy, we explore these patterns with curiosity and compassion, while making space for what you need and want in your relationships.
Meet Dr. Ana Baratta, LPCC
I’m Dr. Ana Baratta, a bilingual licensed therapist helping women in Ohio, Indiana, Florida, and Puerto Rico navigate anxiety, people-pleasing, and difficulty setting boundaries.
Many of the women I work with are used to being the person everyone can count on. They care deeply about other people, but somewhere along the way, their own needs became harder to recognize, express, or prioritize.
In therapy, we can explore what makes it difficult to say no, what happens when someone is disappointed or upset with you, and why setting a reasonable boundary can still leave you questioning yourself afterward.
I offer therapy in English and Spanish and incorporate EMDR when it’s the right fit. My approach is warm, direct, and trauma-informed, with respect for your experiences, your pace, and the relationships that matter to you.
My Approach to People-Pleasing Therapy in Cincinnati, Ohio
In our online therapy sessions, we may work together to:
Understand where your people-pleasing patterns may have started.
Explore experiences and relationships that may have shaped the way you respond to other people.
Practice setting boundaries while making room for the guilt or discomfort that may come with them.
Notice when you’re taking responsibility for someone else’s emotions.
Build greater trust in your own needs, decisions, and feelings.
Stay connected to yourself even when someone else is disappointed or upset.
My approach is trauma-informed, and I incorporate EMDR when it’s appropriate for your needs and goals. We can work at a pace that allows us to understand these patterns without assuming you need to change everything about the way you care for others.
All sessions are conducted online through a HIPAA-compliant platform for women located in Ohio, Florida, Indiana, and Puerto Rico.
Frequently Asked Questions
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My style is warm, trauma-informed, and collaborative. I tailor therapy to your needs and goals, and we move at a pace that feels supportive while still making meaningful progress.
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You can contact me through my website, email, or phone to schedule a free 15-minute consultation. If we decide to move forward, we will schedule your first appointment and I will send you the next steps for paperwork and intake.
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For many people, yes — people pleasing is a learned survival strategy, often rooted in childhood environments where love or safety felt conditional. When saying "no" or having needs felt dangerous, learning to prioritize everyone else's comfort became adaptive. The problem is that what protected you then keeps you stuck now. Therapy helps you understand the origins of the fawn response, build the capacity to tolerate discomfort when you disappoint others, and develop an identity that isn't built entirely around being needed or approved of.
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Genuine kindness comes from a place of choice and reciprocity — you give because you want to, not because you're afraid of what happens if you don't. Codependency is driven by anxiety, fear of abandonment, or the belief that your worth depends on how much you do for others. The key question is: what happens inside you when you say no? If the answer is intense guilt, panic, or a sense that the relationship will collapse, that's worth exploring in therapy. I work with clients to distinguish authentic generosity from compulsive self-erasure.
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People-pleasing in relationships can look like chronic over-giving, difficulty expressing needs, agreeing to things you resent, avoiding conflict at all costs, or feeling responsible for other people's emotions. Recovery isn't about becoming selfish — it's about learning that your needs are just as valid as everyone else's. In therapy, we work on identifying your own feelings and values (often separate from everyone else's expectations), practicing boundary-setting in a graduated way, and processing the guilt and fear that come up when you start to change these patterns.
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Yes — and this is one of the most meaningful pieces of work we do together. Setting limits for the first time is uncomfortable, even when it's right. Therapy helps you understand why boundary-setting feels so threatening, work through the underlying fear of rejection or abandonment, and practice new ways of communicating that are honest without being harsh. Over time, my clients find that their relationships don't collapse — in fact, the healthiest ones often get stronger, and the ones that couldn't survive their growth reveal themselves for what they were.
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I am a private-pay practice and do not bill insurance directly. If applicable, I can provide a superbill that you may submit to your insurance company for possible out-of-network reimbursement.
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My current private-pay fees are:
Ohio & Florida: $ 150 per session
Puerto Rico: $ 100 per session
Out of Network Benefits Calculator
Out-of-network means I am not directly contracted with your insurance plan. Some clients may still be able to use their out-of-network benefits and receive partial reimbursement from their insurance company.