About Michele
Michele Downey is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) in California with 35 years of experience. She focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, addiction concerns, relationship strain, depression, and ADHD. Michele aims to meet people where they are and work at a pace that feels manageable.
Michele uses straightforward conversation and practical strategies. She adapts sessions to each person's needs instead of following one fixed method. People can expect calm, respectful listening and concrete steps to try between meetings.
Background and approach
Her work also covers grief, trauma and abuse, compassion fatigue, and mood disorders such as bipolar. Michele supports people dealing with life changes, caregiver stress, and problems that come from family of origin or blended family situations. She also addresses codependency, communication breakdowns, and issues around intimacy and self-esteem.
Michele has helped people facing substance use and other addictions, including drug and alcohol concerns. She offers guidance on coping skills for anger, sleeping and eating problems, and parenting strain. Michele also helps those wrestling with guilt, forgiveness, life purpose, or midlife transitions.
Sessions are shaped by each person's goals. Michele emphasizes practical tools, clear communication, and steady support. Her aim is to help people build better daily habits and clearer choices so they can move toward a more satisfying life.
Approach-oriented online therapy that fits your life
Michele draws on evidence-based therapeutic techniques that focus on practical change and emotional understanding. One approach emphasizes skill building for stress, anxiety, and attention-related challenges by teaching specific coping tools and daily routines that reduce overwhelm. Another approach centers on relationship and communication work, helping people practice new ways to express needs and set boundaries so interactions feel clearer and less draining.Finding the right approach is a shared process. Michele works collaboratively to match methods to a person's goals, preferences, and the problems they bring. She checks in about what helps and adapts plans so work in sessions transfers to real life.
Online therapy offers flexibility for busy schedules and for people who need different ways to connect. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues. Phone sessions can be useful when bandwidth is limited or for shorter check-ins. Live chat and text-based messaging make it possible to keep momentum between sessions and to share updates without scheduling a full call. Together these options help make regular work on goals more practical and consistent.
Questions people ask
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What this therapist works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Relationship issues
Also listed
- ADHD
- Anger management
- Bipolar disorder
- Blended family issues
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Coaching
- Codependency
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Dependent personality
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating disorders
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Intimacy-related issues
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Mood disorders
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Parenting issues
- Post-traumatic stress
- Postpartum depression
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Sleeping disorders
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Trauma and abuse
- Women's issues
- Experience
- 35 years
- Licensed
- California
- Languages
- English
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