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MB Portrait of Michele Bonanno
Online therapist

Michele Bonanno

Compassionate practical therapy for life challenges

Credentials
LMHC
Experience
32 years
Licensed in
Florida
Languages
English
Format
Online sessions

About Michele

Michele Bonanno is a licensed mental health counselor with 32 years of experience helping people cope with stress, anxiety, depression, grief, and parenting challenges. She also addresses concerns such as trauma and abuse, self-esteem, addictions, ADHD, relationship and intimacy issues, and life transitions. Michele works in Florida and offers services in English, including to international clients.

Her style is warm and straightforward. She listens first, then focuses on practical steps the client can try between sessions.

Background and approach

Michele blends established approaches to fit each person’s needs rather than using one fixed method. Sessions are meant to feel like a steady, problem-solving conversation. Over her career she has worked with a wide range of concerns, including caregiving stress, chronic illness, blended family issues, adoption and foster care questions, and body image struggles.

She also supports people facing career shifts, burnout, compassion fatigue, and commitment or attachment concerns. Michele brings long experience to complex, overlapping life problems. In therapy she uses tools drawn from cognitive behavioral therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, attachment-based methods, and client-centered work.

Those tools help with adjusting unhelpful thoughts, managing emotions, strengthening relationships, and clarifying values and goals. Michele aims to help clients find concrete ways to feel more steady day to day. Her credential is FL LMHC MH6519, which indicates licensure as a mental health counselor in Florida.

People who want to begin can expect a conversational intake and a focus on practical, doable changes tailored to their situation.

Therapeutic approaches for online care

Michele commonly uses cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy in her online work. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) focuses on identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors to reduce symptoms like anxiety and depression. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) helps people clarify their values, accept difficult feelings, and take committed action toward what matters to them.

She also draws on attachment-based ideas to help people understand relationship patterns and improve emotional connection. That approach can be useful when people want clearer boundaries, healthier closeness, or to repair trust over time.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Michele collaborates with each person to choose methods based on their goals, preferences, and what feels most useful. She adapts techniques across sessions so the plan can change as progress is made.

Online therapy offers flexibility through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. These options make it easier to fit sessions into busy schedules, continue work during life transitions, and use shorter check-ins when helpful. Michele uses these formats to keep therapy practical and consistent for people with varied needs.

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.

Attachment-Based Therapy

Looks at how early bonds shaped what you expect from closeness, and how that plays out now with a partner, a parent, or your own children.

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.

Frequently asked questions

What issues does Michele address?
She supports people with stress, anxiety, depression, trauma, addictions, ADHD, relationship and intimacy issues, parenting concerns, grief, and many other life challenges listed in her profile.
What is her therapeutic style like?
Michele listens first and then offers practical steps to try between sessions. Her style is warm, straightforward, and focused on making steady progress.
How much experience does she have?
She brings 32 years of clinical experience working with a broad range of emotional and life challenges.
What are her credentials and where is she located?
She holds FL LMHC MH6519, a Florida license as a mental health counselor, and practices from Florida.
Which languages are supported?
Sessions are offered in English and Michele is available to work with international clients.
What session formats are offered?
She provides video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging as session formats.
How does payment and cost work?
Costs vary with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Click the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule according to therapist availability.

Specialties and expertise

Also works with

Experience
32 years
Licensed
Florida
Languages
English

Next step

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