Michella is originally from Brazil, and besides English, she is also fluent in Portuguese and Spanish languages. Michella specializes in relationship and sex therapy for intercultural couples, as well as immigrant individuals with cultural adjustment issues. Michella strives to collaborate with clients to create a customized plan that is suited to their specific requirements by using an eclectic approach and a systemic perspective. Although Michella has expertise in relationships and sexuality issues, she also helps individuals and couples to address:

• affairs,
• communication issues,
• sexuality,
• parenting,
• life transitions,
• separation,
• divorce
• anxiety disorders,
• mood disorders,
• adjustment disorders,
• life challenging illness (self or others)
• marital, family, or relationship problems,
• assertiveness issues,
• career adjustment or choice.

Michella is an individual and couple’s therapist who wishes to create a collaborative therapy experience, in a safe, non-judgmental environment, for clients to strengthen the quality of their relationships and to be able to live healthy sexuality in their lives. She believes that thriving relationships have honest and respectful communication in an environment that allows sharing of emotional intimacy, as well as physically.

Michella graduated from Capella University with a Master’s Marriage and Family Therapy program, so she is considered a systemic/ integrative therapist, and her work is informed, but not limited to, the following treatment modalities: Narrative Therapy, Emotional-Focused Therapy (EFT), Bowen Family Systems Therapy, Gottman Method Couples Therapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Psychoeducation Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy (SFT), which are all well established, and research-based and tested approaches.

Filled with warmth, acceptance, genuineness, a hint of humor and self-disclosure, is Michella’s therapy style. Michella has previous experience with Architecture, Arts, Cosmetology Industry, Family Community Services; all which allows her to creatively assist her clients in gaining a systemic perspective, identifying their strengths, and building healthy coping mechanisms. Being an immigrant herself, Michella understands what it takes to adapt to a whole new culture, once you have left your native country. Therefore, Michella is very attentive to the concerns of the Brazilian, Latino, and Hispanic communities, welcoming clients who wish to have a therapist that is affirming of their cultural heritage, as well as speak their native language: either Portuguese or Spanish.