About Michelle

I earned my master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from University of Texas at Tyler and I’m excited to be a part of Cardinal as an LPC Associate under the supervision of Marianne DuMond, LPC-S. The main part of my internship was at a hospice facility. I worked directly with the patients and their families, as well as the health care staff providing crisis and/or supportive counseling relative to facing end-of-life issues, having a life-limiting illness, and/or the challenges presented by being a caregiver. I have worked as a peer counselor at a women’s shelter, with individuals struggling with addictions of many types, and with individuals recently released from prison trying to build a life and find their place in the community.

Closer to my heart is the time I worked with a group focused on housing, helping and supporting our homeless Veterans. Both my grandfathers were retired Army, and one uncle, once out of the Navy, served as an EMT and later became a police officer. I see our Veterans, current military members and first responders as the most courageous people on the planet. It makes my heart smile to see that same courage exhibited as these heroic men and women seek out and accept help for emotional and mental issues, so many of which were created while they defended our country and our freedom.

Michelle’s approach

I think of each of us as our own little “ecosystem”, everything about us is interconnected; nothing affects one part of us that doesn’t somehow affect other parts as well whether we’re aware of it or not. I strive to work with you as a whole person – mind, body and spirit - throughout the therapeutic journey. If you have a faith or religion, I want to learn about it and perhaps help you draw strength and peace from it as we go forward. I implement techniques from Solution Focused Brief Therapy, Reality Therapy and Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, but I may also encourage the personal practice of mindfulness, meditation, breathing techniques, somatic movement, and the Emotional Freedom Technique (also known as Tapping) for relief of anxiety. And, I have worked with clients in different art mediums to foster the creative expression of something that may not be available in words just yet.

I feel it’s very important that we all have someone to talk with who is outside our circle of family and friends. Someone safe, where there’s no judgment, agenda or expectations, but who can be encouraging and bring hope - and even a sense of humor - into the mix. Someone you can trust to hear you and support you as we work out where you are, where you want to be and what it will take to get from here to there. I am committed to being that person for all my clients.

Continuing Education Courses Completed

Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder

Trauma Informed Care: How to encourage Post-Traumatic Growth

Brain Changes After Emotional Freedom Techniques

Tapping for Chronic Pain

Engaging Lived Experience in Suicide Prevention

Real Men Don’t….? The Hidden Traumas of Masculinity

Beyond S.M.A.R.T. – Helping Clients Set and Achieve Goals

Post Traumatic Growth (PTG)

Understanding the Trauma of Incarceration

Positive Psychology: The Basics

Counseling Clients with Intellectual Development Disorder: A Look at What Works

Counseling Clients with Disabilities: Introduction to the Issues

Counseling and the Microbiome

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy for At-Risk and Suicidal Adolescents

The Neuroscience of Habits

Services offered

Individual Counseling

Couples Counseling

Grief & Loss Counseling

Life Transition Counseling

Emotional Freedom Technique (Tapping)