Michelle Thorsteinson, MS, LMHCA, LMFTA
Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate
(425) 608-0729 | [email protected]
As your therapist, I offer honesty, openness, comfort, and a commitment to seeking God’s guidance and direction for our time together. In John 10:10b, Jesus says, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” As your counselor, I will listen for those parts of your story where you are not experiencing “life to the full” and explore possibilities for how your story could be expressed differently and with preferred meaning moving forward. Ultimately, my priority is to give my best to your process, and to trust that our mutual commitment toward your healing and wholeness will help draw you closer to the fullness of life that God intends for you.
Everett – Mon
Monroe – Tue & Thu
Online (WA only) – Mon, Tue & Thu
I offer professional Christian counseling for adult individuals, and couples in any stage of their relationship. I have extensive experience working with clients dealing with issues related to anxiety, depression, relationships, grief and loss, adoption, parenting, trauma, abandonment, anger management, and more. No matter what concerns you may be facing, I will support you by helping you develop skills, examine thoughts and perspectives, and engage in relationships in life-giving ways. As your therapist, I will consider how your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual realities may be impacting the challenges in your life and work with you to develop a customized treatment plan, with God’s help.
My Goal as a Christian Counselor
My goal is to come alongside you and join you in your pursuit of mending what feels broken. We all experience times in our lives when we feel overwhelmed, confused, lost, afraid, and/or weary. I offer a space where you can feel safe and supported in a faith-filled environment. As your counselor, I will remind you of your value and point you toward the assured hope that the healing and wholeness that God intends for you are possible.
What I Offer in Christian Counseling
I offer a safe, warm, and encouraging space where you can be free to look honestly at those things that have led you to counseling. I am committed to listening and hearing you, so I can partner with you to identify new, effective ways of engaging with whatever challenge you may face. We will work together to reach your goals for healing and restoration. I offer positive support, honest and therapeutic questions, and affirmation of your strengths that can be drawn upon for growth. I am available to pray with or for you, quietly listen with you for nudges from God, and to turn to Scripture for guidance should this be something you wish to engage in during our sessions.
My Approach to Christian Counseling
I believe that one of the most essential components to the counseling process is the therapeutic relationship between counselor and client. It is important, from the start, that you experience a level of comfort and hope that will help you to safely invest in the “work” of counseling. As a result, I place high value on our first session, and making sure that you feel heard, that you receive answers to your questions, and that you experience some level of confirmation about moving forward in this process with me or not. As we reach some clarity about your primary goals, I will draw upon and integrate a number of theories and approaches that can help achieve the outcomes for which you hope. During the course of counseling, I will frequently check in with you to assess how the process is going for you, and course correct, if needed.
Qualifications & Experience
I have my BA in English Writing (Non-Fiction) from Western Washington University and a Master of Science in Counseling and Family Therapy from Seattle Pacific University. I am also trained as an Incredible Years Facilitator (an evidence-based parent education curriculum).
My Call to Christian Counseling
I chose to pursue counseling because I knew that one of the ways God had gifted me was in my capacity to come alongside others who are struggling. Many people in my life had encouraged me to become a counselor, indicating they recognized qualities in me that they felt would be comforting and helpful to people who were processing hard things. That led me to apply to the Master’s in Counseling and Family Therapy program at SPU.
More About Me/On a Personal Note
I have been married to my husband for 22 years and we have two sons who are currently in high school. Activities that bring me joy and help me feel rejuvenated are anything water-related, hiking, camping, and generally being in nature. I am a fan of knitting, gardening, cooking, dancing with my husband, learning new things, playing games with my family, attending my boys’ sporting events, and spending time with my extended family. I love to sing, and I participate in the worship team at my church. I also find that I benefit from creating a quiet space for myself to just be still at times, and try to make this a regular practice.
Areas of Expertise/Specialties
- Abandonment and Neglect
- Adoption
- Aging and Geriatric Issues
- Anger Management
- Anxiety
- Bipolar Disorder
- Coaching
- Couples Counseling
- Codependency
- Depression
- Family Counseling
- Grief and Loss
- Group Counseling
- Individual Counseling
- Infidelity and Affairs
- Marriage Counseling
- Online Counseling
- Personal Development
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Premarital Counseling
- Relationship Issues
- Sexual Abuse
- Spiritual Development
- Trauma
- Weight Loss
- Women’s Issues
Anxiety and Depression
When working with you around anxiety and/or depression, I will start by hearing your story and asking questions that will help me better understand the impact that anxiety or depression has had on your body, mind, and spirit. I will listen for what anxiety or depression have been “telling” you about your identity. In many cases, our thought lives and perceptions can significantly impact the level of power anxiety and depression have to interfere in our lives.
Through evidence-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy paired with a strengths-based focus, all encompassed by the truth of what God’s Word tells us about who you are and your purpose in Him, we can begin to challenge those beliefs and/or thoughts that seem to be granting a way for anxiety or depression to be troublesome in your life. We can challenge those beliefs through conversation, examining alternative perspectives, prayer, engaging with God’s Word, and practicing ways of drowning out the messages that anxiety and depression seek to amplify in your life. There is so much hope for you to reach a place that will free you up to experience the life God created you for.
Couples and Marriage Counseling
There are many reasons a couple may choose to invest in marriage counseling. You may find yourself in a place of brokenness in your marriage, unsure of how to come together and repair or restore your relationship. You may find yourself in a season of familiarity in your marriage, where your commitment is strong, but your connection may be impacted by the busyness of family/work life that has you greeting one another in passing. You may generally agree on most things but suddenly find yourselves at odds regarding a particular decision. You may be living into an excruciating loss together, but feel very separate at the same time.
The counseling approach I take in marriage and couples counseling sessions is to focus on creating a safe space to share what is hindering connection in your marriage, identify the underlying unexpressed needs or desires that may be influencing ineffective patterns of engaging, and together work with you to support communication at a level that invites you to engage with one another in life-giving ways, which will strengthen the connection God intends for you as a couple. I will draw upon Narrative Therapy, Family Systems Therapy, Attachment Theory, and Emotionally Focused Therapy in conjunction with biblical application as resources to guide our work together.
Grief and Loss
In grief and loss counseling, I seek to create a safe space for you to share about your loss and the resulting grief as you feel ready to do so. This is not a relationship where I will be focused on eliminating grief. There is a permanence with most loss, which means some aspects of grief will likely be part of your story moving forward. However, the capacity to express your grief and integrate it into your life without it feeling all-consuming can grow in a supportive counseling relationship where you are free to honestly speak about, cry about, question, and seek assurance of God’s presence with you in this very hard reality.
I will honor and normalize for you the fact that grief is not time limited. Though, with time, the intensity of your grief can ease. I will focus on helping you find space within yourself to grieve loss, while also living your life in the direction of God’s ongoing plan and purpose for you, which involves a hope and future. You do not need to choose one or the other. Grief and hope can coexist. In grief and loss counseling, with your preferences in mind, I can also incorporate a variety of resources, such as Scripture, music, art work, or written or spoken words that may help you give expression to what you are feeling on this journey.
Parent Coaching / Counseling
Parenting can be one of the most rewarding callings we have, while also being one of the most challenging. My parent coaching sessions usually involve identifying the aspects of your parent/child relationship that leave you feeling unsure, disconnected, overwhelmed, ineffective, or frustrated. We will consider the goals you have for your parenting. Together we will explore strategies for engaging with your child in a way that can influence the motivation for positive choices and fulfilling interactions on the part of both parent and child.
Parent coaching is typically more effective with children up to 6 years of age. It is a foundational intervention that will hopefully help set the tone for your parent/child relationship in the long-term. Parent coaching often benefits from having the child(ren) present in some of our sessions so I can collaborate with you on ways of engaging that might be helpful right in the moment.
I am a trained facilitator for the evidence-based Incredible Years Parent Education Program, and draw upon many of their techniques to support parents in reaching their goals. I will also potentially integrate aspects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Attachment Theory, and Emotionally Focused Therapy in my work with parents. For me, the overarching goal is to help you and your child experience your relationship as the gift God intends it to be, which is affirmed in Psalm 127:3.
Counseling for Those Impacted by Adoption
While counseling with individuals, couples, or families impacted by adoption may not look significantly different from other counseling, there can be comfort in working with a counselor who understands the many layers of relationship inherent in adoption, and the potential complexity of those relationships. I have over twelve years of experience counseling birth parents, adoptees, and adoptive parents, and will treat your own unique adoption story with care, compassion, and a commitment to helping you confront beliefs or thoughts about yourself or others in your adoption story that leave you unsettled and conflicted. We will look for alternative perspectives and ways of relating that might help contribute to your story in new and healing ways.
Availability (by office location):
- Everett – Monday
- Monroe – Tuesday & Thursday
- Online (WA only) – Monday, Tuesday & Thursday
Fees: I offer a Risk-Free Initial Session for individuals, couples, and groups looking to pursue counseling with me. Please note that there is a fee for the Risk-Free Initial Session as it is a clinical hour and reimbursable to most insurance companies, but if you choose not to reschedule and continue therapy after the initial session the entire fee for the session will be waived. For ongoing treatment the full fee per session is required at the time of service.
Insurance: As a Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate (LMHCA), some insurance companies will reimburse for a portion of my services (as an Out of Network Provider).