Michaela Carney, LMHC

Michaela Carney is a licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) in Florida with five years of clinical experience. She focuses on practical steps people can take when stress, anxiety, relationship strain, or past trauma make daily life harder. She talks plainly and centers each session on the person's strengths and goals.

Michaela uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people notice and change the thoughts and habits that keep problems going. She also draws on client-centered ideas, which means she follows the person’s lead and builds on what already works for them. For people who have experienced trauma, she incorporates trauma-focused strategies and EMDR-informed ideas when appropriate.

Sessions are geared toward real-life concerns such as low self-esteem, coping with life changes, or trouble communicating at work or at home. She helps people break big problems into small steps and practices skills they can use between sessions. Conversations tend to be straightforward and action-oriented.

Michaela can help people dealing with divorce or separation, impulsivity, questions about life purpose, workplace stress, social anxiety, or issues related to narcissistic dynamics. She pays attention to how patterns form and what interrupts them.

She provides care in English and Portuguese and offers sessions by video, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging. Prospective clients complete a short questionnaire to get matched and then schedule sessions based on the therapist’s availability.

How therapy approaches translate to online care

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and following the person’s priorities. In online sessions this often looks like the therapist asking open questions, reflecting what is shared, and helping the client set the pace for change. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy targets thoughts and behaviors that keep problems going by using structured exercises and small homework tasks to practice between sessions. That structure adapts well to video or messaging formats because worksheets and skill practice can be shared remotely. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR, is used to address traumatic memories by guiding the person through specific processing steps; parts of this work can be adapted for remote sessions when that approach fits the client’s needs and readiness.

The therapist views finding the right approach as a collaborative process. She will talk with the person about goals and preferences, try a method, and adjust based on how the work progresses. Clients and the therapist decide together what feels most helpful and when to change direction.

Online formats offered include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video works well for exercises that benefit from face-to-face interaction, while phone calls may be easier when bandwidth is limited. Live chat or text-based messaging can support quick check-ins, shorter reflections, or ongoing skill practice between sessions. These options make therapy more flexible and easier to fit into a busy schedule.