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- Parenting strategies
- Couples work
- Addiction support
About Michael
Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in New Jersey with 39 years of experience, Michael Michnya focuses on relationships, parenting, addiction, and life transitions. He describes his work as helping parents get more cooperation from children, assisting couples who want to stay together, supporting creative people to express their vision, and helping individuals and families adjust to difficult changes.
Michael asks for active participation. He looks for clients who believe change is possible, are willing to try new things, and will do work between sessions. He values punctuality, honest communication, and completion of agreed exercises. Sessions emphasize creativity, risk-taking, and direct feedback to make progress faster.
Earlier in his career he taught preschool and then volunteered with a child abuse prevention effort. From 1982 to 1986 he worked as a counselor in a long-term rehabilitation program for teenage substance abusers. After earning a master’s degree in counseling psychology, he led family-adolescent alcohol services and provided individual, group, and family counseling from 1986 to 1990.
From 1990 to 2014 he was a program manager at Family Service Association where he trained and supervised more than 30 in-home counselors. Those programs focused on parenting education, juvenile diversion, and families where children were at risk of out-of-home placement. Since then he has worked in private practice and provided counseling at short-term and community rehab programs and at a federally qualified health center.
Michael uses creativity, optimism, and evidence-informed methods to help people make practical changes. He describes his approach as drawing on client-centered work, cognitive behavioral ideas, emotion-focused methods, the Gottman method for relationships, and mindfulness practices. He aims to help clients find concrete solutions they can use in daily life.
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How Michael’s approaches translate to remote work
Client-Centered Therapy focuses on listening and helping clients find their own solutions. In practice that means sessions concentrate on what the client notices, with the therapist reflecting back and guiding choices. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) looks at how thoughts, feelings, and actions interact. CBT sessions often include specific skills and short exercises to change patterns that keep problems going. Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT) concentrates on emotions and attachment patterns in relationships and is often used when people want to improve closeness and communication.Choosing an approach is collaborative. Michael will discuss goals, preferences, and what has helped before. Together the client and therapist decide which methods to try and adjust the plan as needed based on progress and feedback.
This biography does not list specific session formats, so confirm current options before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, reduce travel time, and allow shorter check-ins when needed. It also makes it possible to continue care when life changes make in-person visits harder. Ask about the exact formats offered and how they typically structure a first remote session.
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Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
39+ years
Listed in
New Jersey
Languages
English
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Frequently asked questions
What concerns does he help with?
He addresses stress, anxiety, depression, addictions, relationship and family issues, parenting, LGBT concerns, trauma and grief, intimacy and sexual issues, sleep and anger problems, self-esteem, career questions, coping with life changes, coaching, and ADHD.
What therapeutic approaches does he use?
He uses client-centered techniques, cognitive behavioral methods, emotionally-focused approaches, the Gottman method for couples, and mindfulness practices depending on the issue.
How long has he been practicing?
He has 39 years of experience working in education, counseling, program management, supervision, and private practice since 1980.
What credential and location are listed?
He holds the LPC credential and practices in New Jersey.
Which languages are supported and can international clients join?
Sessions are offered in English. He does not accept international clients.
What formats are offered for sessions?
Session formats are not specified in this biography. Confirm which session options are available before booking.
How are fees handled?
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with him?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If you are in danger, use the urgent help numbers.