Michelle Howlett, LICSW

Michelle Howlett is a licensed clinical social worker (LICSW) based in Alabama with nine years of experience. She focuses on helping people through stress, anxiety, depression, and self-esteem struggles. Michelle also supports those facing grief, addiction, relationship strain, and career transitions.

Her work often centers on the needs of LGBTQ+ people, veterans, caregivers, and older adults navigating life changes. She pays attention to issues that come with aging and geriatric concerns, including hospice and end-of-life counseling. Isolation, loneliness, compassion fatigue, and caregiver stress are also among her areas of focus.

Michelle uses practical therapy methods that help people make changes in daily life. Sessions emphasize learning coping skills, noticing patterns that keep problems going, and building self-compassion. She blends approaches like client-centered work, cognitive behavioral techniques, and mindfulness to meet each person where they are.

In sessions she offers a calm, respectful space to talk through painful feelings such as guilt, shame, or grief. She helps clients set small, achievable goals and tries to keep tools simple enough to use between appointments. The emphasis is on gradual progress and clearer choices.

Michelle aims to help people reclaim a sense of direction during hard times. She partners with clients to identify values, reduce distressing symptoms, and strengthen coping skills for everyday life.

How therapeutic approaches shape online care

Client-centered therapy focuses on the person’s experience. The therapist listens with curiosity and reflects what she hears to help people feel understood and to clarify goals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors connect and teaches practical tools to change patterns that increase anxiety or depression. Dialectical Behavior Therapy, or DBT, emphasizes emotion regulation and coping skills for intense emotions and relationship stresses.

Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will collaborate with each person to choose methods that match their needs, goals, and preferences. That choice can shift over time as challenges change or new priorities emerge.

Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy life, such as scheduling during a lunch break or avoiding travel time. It also allows for shorter check-ins when needed and can reduce barriers like needing to be on camera every time. Confirm the available session formats before booking to see what options fit your routine.