Michelle Garibaldi

Michelle Garibaldi is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) based in California. She has 23 years of clinical experience and helps people facing stress, anxiety, grief, trauma, relationship strains, and life transitions. Michelle aims to make the first steps toward change feel manageable and clear.

She uses a warm, empathic style and works collaboratively with each person. Michelle helps clients set realistic goals and breaks them into small, workable steps. Sessions tend to focus on practical changes and building skills that can be used between meetings.

Her approach blends several methods to match what each person needs. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is used to identify unhelpful thoughts and try new ways of responding. Narrative Therapy helps people reframe their stories and find new meanings in difficult experiences.

Michelle also draws on client-centered and mindfulness practices to support emotional awareness and self-compassion. Motivational Interviewing is used when someone needs help finding direction or overcoming avoidance. Together these tools are used to address grief, hospice and end-of-life concerns, addictions, parenting stress, compassion fatigue, and related issues.

She emphasizes clear goals and practical steps over long, abstract explanations. People who want a straightforward, gentle but purposeful approach may find her style helpful. To begin, readers are encouraged to use the site process to match and schedule a first appointment.

How her therapy approaches translate online

Many of Michelle's methods adapt well to remote work. Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening carefully and reflecting back what matters most, which helps people feel heard and understood even during a video or phone session. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) involves identifying patterns of thought and behavior and practicing new responses; this often includes homework and brief in-session exercises that can be done by phone or video.

Finding the right approach is a collaborative process. Michelle will work with each person to decide which methods fit their goals and daily life. She checks in regularly and adjusts the plan based on what is helping and what feels manageable.

Session formats are not specified in the biography, so please confirm current session options before booking. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, reduce travel time, and allow shorter check-ins on hectic days. It also supports continuity of care when life changes make clinic visits difficult. Licensed professionals often use these benefits to keep progress steady while aligning work with each client's routine.