Michael Shaughnessy

Michael Shaughnessy is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in Florida with 39 years of clinical experience. He brings a warm, down-to-earth presence to sessions and uses humor and directness to help people face difficult issues. Michael likes to share life lessons alongside clinical work, and he stays tenacious in supporting people through painful times.

Over decades he has worked in inpatient settings for substance use, co-dependency, and eating disorders. He has also maintained private practice work in group and solo settings, helping people with depression, anxiety, trauma reactions, relationship struggles, and career questions. His background includes supporting people through grief, parenting strain, compassion fatigue, and other life transitions.

Michael takes an eclectic, experiential approach that leans on Client-Centered and Existential ideas. He encourages people to notice how life experiences shaped their behavior and to try new ways of responding. Sessions often include straightforward conversation, grounded exercises, and occasional personal stories from the therapist to illustrate a point.

People who appreciate a therapist who is candid, persistent, and willing to use humor tend to fit well with his style. He aims to help clients get unstuck, repair important relationships, and find more meaning in their daily lives. Michael works with individuals across a range of concerns and draws on his long experience to tailor the work to each person.

To begin a conversation he asks that people be ready to reflect, try new steps between sessions, and be honest about what they want to change. His goal is to walk alongside clients as they sort through problems and build more satisfying ways of living.

How Michael’s approaches translate to online work

Client-Centered Therapy emphasizes listening, acceptance, and helping each person set their own pace. In practice this means the therapist follows the client’s concerns, reflects what he hears, and supports people as they make choices that feel right for them. It can help with anxiety, depression, relationship questions, and self-doubt.

Existential Therapy focuses on meaning, choice, and how life events shape who we become. This approach invites people to consider values, responsibility, and how to live with uncertainty. It often helps those facing life changes, career crossroads, or grief by clarifying what matters and what actions match those values.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Michael collaborates with each person to try methods that fit their needs and goals. He checks in about what helps and adjusts the focus over time so therapy stays practical and relevant.

The biography does not list specific session formats, so confirm available options before booking. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, reduce travel time, and allow shorter check-ins when needed. It also lets people continue work with a therapist across moves or changes, while the therapist and client decide together how to pace the work and which exercises to use.