About Michelle
Michelle Garibaldi is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) practicing in California. She brings 23 years of experience helping people cope with stress, anxiety, depression, addictions, grief, and relationship struggles. Michelle speaks English and aims to make the first steps feel manageable for anyone feeling overwhelmed.
Her style is warm and empathic. She works in a collaborative way, helping people set clear goals and choose practical steps to reach them.
Background and approach
Sessions focus on what matters most to the individual, with straightforward tools to use between meetings. Michelle draws on several evidence-based approaches to tailor care to each person. She uses client-centered listening to understand priorities, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to shift unhelpful thinking and behavior, and mindfulness techniques to build calm and focus.
Motivational Interviewing helps when someone needs support making changes. She addresses a wide range of life concerns including family and parenting stress, intimacy and relationship challenges, trauma and abuse, sleep problems, career transitions, and compassion fatigue. Michelle also supports people facing issues like abandonment, attachment struggles, caregiving and end-of-life concerns, and midlife questions.
Work is practical and goal-oriented. Michelle offers skills, reflective listening, and steps that people can try between sessions. The focus is on making small changes that add up to real differences in daily life.
Therapeutic approaches and how they work online
Client-centered therapy focuses on listening and understanding what matters most to the person. The therapist helps people clarify goals and supports them as they choose steps to reach those goals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at the thoughts and behaviors that keep problems going and teaches practical exercises to change them and reduce anxiety or low mood.Finding the right approach is part of the process. The therapist will work together with each person to decide which methods fit their needs and preferences. That collaborative process may combine elements from different approaches as goals become clearer.
Online therapy offers flexible ways to connect. Video calls let people talk face-to-face and use visual cues. Phone sessions are useful when a shorter check-in is needed or when bandwidth is limited. Live chat and text-based messaging can fit into a busy day for brief updates, journaling support, or coaching between longer sessions. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, caregiving, or travel schedules while keeping treatment focused and practical.
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What this therapist works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
Also listed
- Abandonment
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Blended family issues
- Career difficulties
- Coaching
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Divorce and separation
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- LGBT
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Mood disorders
- Parenting issues
- Self esteem
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sleeping disorders
- Trauma and abuse
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 23 years
- Licensed
- California
- Languages
- English
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