Michelle Castellani
Calm, practical support for real-life problems
- Credentials
- LCSW
- Experience
- 12 years
- Licensed in
- New Jersey
- Languages
- English
- Format
- Online sessions
About Michelle
Michelle Castellani is a licensed clinical social worker with a Master of Social Work and 12 years of clinical experience. She built much of her practice working in healthcare, where she learned crisis intervention and coping skills for people adjusting to significant life changes.
In independent practice since 2007, she often treats anxiety, mood symptoms, eating concerns, and issues around relationships and intimacy. Michelle uses straightforward, practical strategies and listens first to understand the problem clearly.
Background and approach
Her approach blends Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, mindfulness tools, and a strengths-based perspective. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps people see how thoughts shape feelings and actions. Mindfulness practices, drawn from Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction training, offer breathing and attention techniques that some people find calming.
The strengths perspective helps clients identify skills they already have and put those skills to work on real problems. Sessions focus on steps a person can try between meetings. Michelle explains ideas in simple terms and helps clients try techniques that fit their daily life.
She emphasizes clear assessment so the right strategies are chosen, rather than using one set method for everyone. Her experience in medical settings informs how she handles crisis and adjustment challenges. That background pairs with years in independent practice to support people managing anxiety, depression, grief, sleep problems, addictions, and self-esteem concerns.
Michelle aims to meet clients where they are and work collaboratively toward manageable change.
Therapeutic methods for online family and parenting concerns
Michelle commonly uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which helps people notice and change thoughts that influence feelings and actions; it is useful for anxiety, mood symptoms, and stress-related patterns. She also draws on Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction skills to teach simple breathing and attention practices that can reduce tension and improve focus during stressful moments.She pairs those approaches with a strengths-based perspective that looks for skills a person already has and finds ways to use them for current challenges. Deciding which approach to use is collaborative - the therapist and client talk about goals, try methods, and adjust based on what feels helpful. That process allows treatments to be tailored to each person rather than fixed in advance.
Online therapy offers flexibility for people juggling busy schedules or family demands. Michelle supports video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging so clients can choose what fits their routine. These remote formats make it easier to get consistent help, practice new skills between sessions, and stay connected without commuting.
Frequently asked questions
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Stress, Anxiety
- Family conflicts
- Grief
Also works with
- Addictions
- Anger management
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Intimacy-related issues
- LGBT
- Parenting issues
- Relationship issues
- Self esteem
- Sleeping disorders
- Trauma and abuse
- Experience
- 12 years
- Licensed
- New Jersey
- Languages
- English
Next step
Talk to Michelle
- Takes a few minutes
- Nothing to set up just to look
- Stop at any point