PuttingFamilyFirst

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MR Portrait of Melissa Reighn
Online therapist

Melissa Reighn

Calm, practical help for everyday parenting stress

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Credentials
LMHC
Experience
15 years
Licensed in
New York
Languages
English
Format
Online sessions

About Melissa

Melissa Reighn is a licensed mental health counselor with 15 years of practice in New York. She helps people manage stress and anxiety and supports those coping with trauma, grief, and mood concerns. Melissa emphasizes practical steps a person can use day to day.

She speaks plainly and keeps sessions focused on real problems and workable changes. Her approach treats the client as the expert in their own life. She looks for strengths clients already have and builds on them.

Background and approach

Melissa encourages small, achievable goals so progress feels manageable. In sessions she uses methods like cognitive behavioral work to spot unhelpful thoughts and acceptance-based tools to reduce struggle with painful feelings. She also draws on trauma-focused techniques when past events interfere with current life.

Melissa’s practice includes attention to parenting stress and broader family and parenting concerns. She offers ways to manage overwhelm, improve communication, and rebuild routine when life has been disrupted. She provides multiple ways to connect, including video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text messaging.

Sessions are delivered in English and are arranged through a subscription model that can be canceled at any time. To begin, a short matching questionnaire is completed and appointments are scheduled based on availability.

Therapy approaches you can use online

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, focuses on helping people live around hard feelings rather than fighting them. It teaches how to notice thoughts and feelings, choose what matters most, and take small steps toward those values. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, helps identify unhelpful thought patterns and replace them with more workable thinking and habits to reduce anxiety and mood difficulties. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, EMDR, targets memories that continue to cause distress and uses structured processing to reduce their emotional hold.

Choosing the right approach is a team effort. The therapist will talk with the client about current struggles, goals, and comfort with different methods. Together they will try the approaches that make the most sense and adjust the plan as progress is made.

Online therapy offers practical flexibility. Video calls let you see facial cues and work through techniques together. Phone sessions can fit into a busy day when video isn’t possible. Live chat and text-based messaging allow shorter check-ins or written reflections between sessions. These options help people keep therapy consistent while fitting around caregiving, work, and other responsibilities.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Less about arguing with difficult thoughts, more about loosening their grip and acting on what matters to you anyway. Values and committed action carry the work, which suits conversation at a distance.

Client-Centered Therapy

The direction comes from you rather than from a set programme. The therapist offers a warm, non-judgemental space to think out loud and work at your own pace. Online, this rests on the relationship rather than on being in the same room.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT looks at the link between what you think, how you feel, and what you do. You work on noticing unhelpful patterns and practising steadier responses. It suits online sessions well, because much of the work happens between appointments and can be talked through from anywhere.

Frequently asked questions

What kinds of concerns does she address?
She works with stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, parenting, self esteem, ADHD, eating concerns, and bipolar symptoms, along with many related issues listed in her profile.
How does she approach therapy?
Her style is practical and client-focused. She uses clear tools, short-term goals, and collaborative problem solving to make changes that fit daily life.
What is her professional background?
Melissa has 15 years of professional experience supporting people through mood and trauma-related challenges and life transitions.
Where is she licensed and practicing?
She is a licensed mental health counselor, NY LMHC 006721, and practices in New York.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
What session formats are available?
Therapy is available via video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging.
How are fees handled?
Cost varies by location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, completing a short matching questionnaire, and then scheduling sessions according to therapist availability.

Specialties and expertise

Top specialties

Also works with

Therapeutic approaches

Experience
15 years
Licensed
New York
Languages
English

Next step

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