Michelle Novitsky (she/they)

Depression is that shadowy cloud in the background that follows us around. When treating depression, I explore how your depression previously presented itself and how it is manifesting now using psychodynamic therapy. This will help both you and I work together to establish healthy coping skills to reduce depression while processing what you are going through in a self-compassionate manner.

We have seen an increase in post-traumatic experiences since the pandemic, and it has shifted our perspective of trauma itself. I take a trauma-informed approach to treating post-traumatic stress, where I educate you about what trauma is, implementing somatic skills to help you identify stress and trauma within your body, and ways to practice noticing the triggers or signs of trauma.

Therapy is a journey, so let us take things slow. By recalling the past to understand the now, you can begin to take an action-oriented approach to healing. Through a psychodynamic lens, I explore your inner world, with previous experiences and how you present yourself in your current state (ie. why may this be happening now?).

Most people are in therapy because of someone else, therefore we deserve a safe and nonjudgmental space to explore how we connect to others and how previous relationships influenced our outlook on the world. Some relational techniques I use involve looking into your trust with others, getting to know how you communicate with those around you, and finding ways to express yourself in an emotionally safe way.

Somatic therapy is special because it is not just your average talk therapy. Through a somatic lens, I exercise curiosity about your relationship with your body and how it responds to your stress or overall mental health. Our bodies and minds are interconnected, and by finding connection between the two, we can start to really get to know ourselves and our needs.

We all experience anxiety, so it is important to learn how we can work with it rather than fight it. I treat anxiety through using dialectical-behavioral therapy. Through DBT, we discuss what kind of skills has worked for your anxiety, where we can create further create tolerance with the anxiety itself and live our fulfilling lives.