When people come to treatment with problems, it is important to remember that they are trying to cope with them in the best way they can.

With that in mind, Mike offers a reflective and engaging partnership with his clients, working toward the goal of helping them to be authentic and compassionate in a world that can be extremely stressful.

Although Mike’s work is solidly grounded in psychodynamic, cognitive/learning, and systems theories, his approach is client-centered, practical and strengths-based.  He brings his honesty, warmth, and humor to the therapy relationship. He is LGBTQ affirmative, and invested in doing cross-cultural therapy which is culturally sensitive.  Mike has a dog, Boo, who has been his co-therapist for a decade.  There is a growing body of research which suggests that AAT (Animal-Assisted Therapy) can be helpful with a range of diagnoses, including Depression, PTSD, and Autistic Spectrum.

Many therapists know little about online games such as World of Warcraft and Second Life. They may dismiss it as unimportant, or assume it is a problem. Mike is a gamer-affirmative therapist, meaning he is more interested in understanding your in-world experience and activity than pathologizing it.

Here are some recent webcasts featuring Mike:

Rethinking Gaming Addiction, Part 1

Rethinking Gaming Addiction, Part 2