Meet Michelle Robin Gould, EdD, LMHC
Licensed Mental Health Counselor, National Certified Counselor, Board Certified TeleMental Health Provider
A Lifetime of Listening Prepared Me for This Work
For much of my adult life, I worked in the service industry. I spent years as a bartender and two decades as a nail technician. Back then, I found that my listening skills were just as important to my customers as pouring drinks or giving manicures. People opened up to me about their dreams, their struggles, their relationships, and what kept them up at night.
I realized I was good at holding space for people, and with the right credentials, I could support them in a more substantial way. To make a long story short, I got trained, got licensed, and became a therapist. Genuine human connection led me to this path.
My Specialty Areas
Addiction Recovery Therapy
Anxiety Therapy
Personal Growth Counseling
My Education and Professional Background
I hold a Master of Science in Mental Health Counseling and a Master of Arts in Composition, Rhetoric, and Digital Media, both from Nova Southeastern University, where I also completed my Doctor of Education in Instructional Technology and Distance Education in 2026. Although my doctorate is not in the counseling field, it is crucial to my therapy practice.
I have extensive specialized training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), trauma, and anxiety, and I draw on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), strength-based, and solution-focused techniques. I am dedicated to continuous learning for my own growth and for the benefit of my clients.
Substance use counseling and addiction recovery have a special place in my practice. I know this territory through my clinical training as well as my own experience in long-term recovery. During my graduate training, I completed a year-long practicum at a substance use treatment facility, which is similar to going through a medical residency. I continued with this focus in my post-graduate internship and carried it into my own private practice.
The spirit, courage, and transformation I witnessed throughout my time at the treatment facility called me to this work. The recovery process is humbling and genuinely beautiful to watch, and I look forward to seeing my clients every day because of it.
My Approach To Therapy
I work with clients who want to pursue deep personal growth, whether that means overcoming anxiety or depression that has been holding them back, building a happier life in substance use recovery, or stepping into a new chapter after trauma.
My approach is centered around helping you develop resources, self-management skills, and self-advocacy tools that will serve you long after our work together ends. While I provide my clients with a wealth of resources, and I’m always here for guidance and support, my ultimate goal is to ensure you leave every session with concrete skills and clear insights that you can use in your everyday life.
I ask questions that get to the heart of what’s getting in your way, so you can get clear on what actually matters to you. I don’t hesitate to call out self-sabotage, but I do so with compassion and tact, and I’ll always ask permission before I go there. I encourage you to speak up for yourself, and therapy sessions are a great place to practice!
On-Demand Content
As we’re working together, you’ll have 24/7 access to customized content in a private customized digital library curated just for you. With my background in instructional design, I create therapy materials to use in my practice, along with curating a collection of resources that you can easily access whenever you want something to work on. There is no additional charge for this content - it’s included in your session fees.
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Your private e-library will contain digital versions of therapy content that targets the treatment goals you tell me you want to work on, including:
Books
Workbooks
Worksheets
Writing activities
Journals with prompts
Interactive lessons
Role-playing activities
Micro-learning courses
Scenario-based practice activities
Videos
Podcasts
Meditations
You can work on your private e-library content when you have the energy and desire to dig in. We will talk about your work in sessions. I will provide feedback, and I encourage you to come armed with questions.
I will build your e-library based on the interests you identify in your intake paperwork, and I will add to it as we go along.
I respect your time, your privacy, and your unique needs. Some days you’ll show up gung-ho and ready to work, and some days you’ll be dragging your ass. I get it, and I’ll be sensitive to that in how I approach your sessions.
Whether you’re recovering from trauma, anxiety, depression, addiction, or the regular challenges life throws at us, you deserve health care professionals that adapt to what you’re going through. You and I will be the decision makers regarding your care - not the insurance companies, and not agency administrators. I treat you as the one-of-a-kind person you are instead of subjecting you to a one-size-fits-all approach. My approach is research-based, but it's also creative, innovative, and tailored to your individual needs and goals.
I carry a small caseload so I can give you more personalized, attentive care. You’ll be able to reach me seven days a week. You have direct access to me, your clinician - there’s no secretary, receptionist, answering service, virtual assistant, or case manager to go through. If you reach out after business hours on weeknights, weekends, or holidays, you will not be handed off to an on-call therapist you've never met who doesn't know your case. You will hear back directly from me. If you're a current client, you will never have to wait days to get a reply. You can message me by secure text or email 24/7/365 for appointment-related concerns and other quick questions.
Toward the beginning of therapy, or any time you’re going through something especially stressful, it’s helpful to be able to reach out to your therapist without having to schedule an hour-long video session. That’s why, in addition to video sessions, I also offer supplemental phone or text-based therapy. I respond quickly, seven days a week, within 12 hours or less, often within the hour.
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Text-based therapy is therapy delivered via text messaging and will usually be asynchronous. It includes messaging in both directions and is a clinical service. Text-based therapy should not be used as a substitute for therapy via video conferencing or phone; it should be used as a complement to it.
Text-based therapy also includes content that you’d like me to read between sessions, such as journal entries, letters, completed worksheets, articles, books, or other items in text format. If you share these items with me in session, there is of course no additional charge for reading them. However, if you ask me to read content between sessions, whether they are sent as text attachments, email attachments, or links, that will be considered text-based therapy, and text-based therapy fees will apply.
There is a difference between text-based therapy and quick texts for things like setting or changing an appointment.
Examples of text-based therapy:
You want to share your reaction to content while it’s fresh in your mind.
You want to check in and let me know how you’re doing, either for accountability or to touch base.
You have a question about something you’re working on in therapy.
You want to add a new subject area to your therapy.
You want to include someone else in your treatment.
You want records sent to you, a personal support, or another healthcare provider.
You want me to read or watch material that you'd like to discuss in session.
Please note that Florida law does not allow the provision of telehealth services via email. If you prefer text-based therapy, you will have two options: 1) You can use our secure texting app, or 2) You will need to send your text-based communications through HIPAA-secure email so they can only be viewed on a secure, encrypted website. I will explain how to do this during your initial session.
Time for text-based therapy is calculated weekly. Calculations are based on an average reading speed of 200 words per minute. Text-based therapy is billed in 20-minute increments for any portion of 20 minutes used in a week. Twenty minutes covers up to 4,000 words in both directions. That’s 16 pages double-spaced - way more than you’ll probably need!
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Text-based therapy fees are charged at the same base hourly rate that I charge for video or phone sessions. See the About tab of my site navigation menu for detailed, transparent fee info on my base hourly rate, sliding scale rates, and professional courtesy rates.
Time for text-based therapy is calculated weekly, and you are charged in 20-minute increments for any portion of 20 minutes used in a week. Calculations are based on an average reading speed of 200 words per minute. Twenty minutes covers up to 4,000 words in both directions. That’s 16 pages double-spaced - probably more than you’ll ever need!
Quick texts for things like setting or changing an appointment are a part of regular treatment operations and are not considered text-based therapy; you will not be invoiced for those types of texts.
The Principles That Shape My Practice
I believe that personal growth and recovery look different for everyone, and I will never tell you which path to take. I’ll give you the information you need to make an informed decision that works for you. I also believe that trauma is often intergenerational and cultural, and many of our struggles are passed down through both genetics and environment.
My practice is welcoming and affirming. I meet every client with an understanding that systemic forces, including racism, misogyny, and other forms of bigotry, can affect their mental health. Personal and professional ethics matter deeply to me, so I do my best to practice what I preach.
An hour-long session is a full hour, not 45-50 minutes. Same with a half hour, or any scheduled block of time. What you schedule is what you get. I won’t double book or overbook, and I deliberately set aside time between clients in the event that we need to extend the session.
How I Work With Clients
I want you to know that you will never hear me say, “I’m not going to work harder at your therapy than you do.” It’s my job to give you 100%, no matter what kind of energy you show up with. I book a 30-minute buffer between sessions, which means that we can ease into our time together without counting the minutes, and I respond to client communications seven days a week, including evenings.
After each session, you’ll receive a customized follow-up care plan from me based on what you tell me you want to work on that week. If you need more time for certain activities, or if start to feel overwhelmed, then we use the same care plan for a month instead. Some weeks you’ll want something to work on between sessions. Other weeks, life shows up, and you won’t. We’ll work at a pace that’s manageable for you.
We’ll start and end each session with a few deep breaths. This is your time and your space, and for that hour, you get to focus on your needs.
A Little About Me
I’m a stickler for professional boundaries, but it’s normal to feel curious about the person you’re going to spend hours talking to about your most personal thoughts and feelings. Knowing a bit more about my life and values can help you decide if we’re a good fit.
In addition to running my own practice, I’m a continuing education provider and a member of several other organizations. I host a free peer consultation group for independently licensed clinicians, serve on a committee within the Association for Educational Communications and Technology, and am actively involved in my local recovery community. I love learning something new every day, and I consider myself a perpetual student. Although I’m bookish, I still cuss a lot. They say that’s a sign of intelligence, and that works for me!
I’m a homebody and a cat mom, and I’m also a vegetarian, and I’ll be honest with you — I prefer plating food to cooking it. I like game shows and cooking shows, and I also enjoy sci-fi, action, and procedurals. I usually start my mornings with The New York Times Games app, and I usually end my day with a gratitude list.
I’m 61 this year, with all the wisdom that comes with lived experience. Between years of clinical practice and a deep well of life experience, I offer you a calm, grounding anchor and sprinklings of humor when it seems like you need to laugh.
While I’m not religious, I am spiritual. To me, spirituality is about recognizing that we don’t exist alone on this planet and upholding the morals, values, and ethics that guide how we live alongside each other. Spiritual principles such as empathy, acceptance, understanding, compassion, and love inform my work.
Living with multiple disabilities has given me a depth of empathy that I bring to each session. If you’re looking for a therapist who’s got that 'been-there-done-that' maturity and can appreciate the weight of your experiences, you’ve found one.
If my approach resonates, I would love to hear from you.
I encourage you to get in touch through my contact form or schedule your first session to begin our work together.
And for the search engine Lords:
I’m Michelle Robin Gould, a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), National Certified Counselor (NCC), and Board-Certified TeleMental Health Provider (BC-TMH) based in Palm Beach County, Florida. I hold a Master of Science in Mental Health Counseling, a Master of Arts in Composition, Rhetoric, and Digital Media, and a Doctor of Education in Instructional Technology and Distance Education, all from Nova Southeastern University.
I specialize in addiction recovery therapy and help adults work through anxiety, depression, trauma, and other challenges that can get in the way of personal growth. I bring extensive training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), trauma, and anxiety treatment to my work, along with a practical, personalized approach. My practice holds the LegitScript Certification for healthcare providers who treat addiction.