01 · Who Melissa works with

Melissa works with stress, Anxiety, trauma and abuse and self esteem

Melissa lists 18 specialisms and 4 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Melissa chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Melissa's own words

What Melissa says about the work

Reproduced in full and unedited - not summarised, not tightened, not rewritten in a house voice.

I am an experienced psychotherapist (M. Ed., LPC, LMHC, NCC, NBCCH, Qualified Supervisor for Mental Health Interns FL, and Intensively Trained DBT Therapist) with a demonstrated history of working in the mental health industry for over 23 years. Skilled in providing Telehealth mental health services including Client Centered Therapy, Solutions Focused Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness and Dialectical Behavior Therapy across a wide range of issues such as Depression, Anxiety, Trauma, Abuse, Mood Dysregulation, Self Esteem, Anger Management, and Life Coaching. I approach therapy from a holistic perspective…body, mind, heart, soul, and spirit. I believe the relationship between client and therapist is the most important element to successful treatment. Without a strong connection between the two, no real change can occur. When the pain of staying the same becomes stronger than the fear of change, that's usually when people make the choice to change. My favorite quote has always been "You are not what happened to you, you are what you choose to become" (Carl Jung). To that end, a person can always choose to reinvent themselves...a kind of metamorphosis similar to the butterfly emerging from a cocoon. Reinventing oneself is not always easy, but the rewards far outweigh the struggle. There is always a "gift" in the most difficult of circumstances, something positive that you learned about yourself through the struggle. Maybe the gift is patience, maybe it's compassion, maybe it's just that you learned to survive. These "gifts' are what you bring forward from the worst of experiences, and they are the very things that will help you move forward in your life. My goal is to always shine a Light in the darkness when someone feels "stuck", to help them remember what they already know but may have temporarily forgotten, to hold sacred space for them, and to "be present" with them as they work to move forward and achieve their goals-as they seek to reinvent themselves. You have all of the answers inside of you. You always did. You still do.

Melissa Colton, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Melissa works

The 5 approaches Melissa lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Melissa lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Melissa's - a general explanation of what each method is, so the list means something before you have spoken to anybody. They are not a claim about how Melissa runs a session.

Client-Centred TherapyPerson-centred · Rogerian

The therapist does not steer toward a technique or a diagnosis. They offer sustained, non-judgemental attention and reflect back what they hear, on the premise that people find their own direction when they are genuinely listened to. Often what people mean by “someone who just gets it”.

Cognitive Behavioural TherapyCBT

Structured, present-focused work on the loop between what you think, how you feel and what you then do. Usually means noticing a thought pattern in the room, testing it against evidence, and practising something different between sessions. Among the most heavily researched talking therapies for depression and anxiety.

Dialectical Behaviour TherapyDBT

A structured skills-led adaptation of CBT built around holding two things at once: accepting yourself as you are and working to change. Teaches concrete skills for distress tolerance, emotion regulation and relationships. Developed for people whose feelings arrive at overwhelming intensity, and strongest-evidenced there.

Mindfulness-Based TherapyMBCT

Trains attention on what is happening right now - body, breath, the thought as it arrives - so distress can be observed rather than automatically acted on. Strongest evidence is in preventing depression from recurring, and it is usually taught as a practice you keep doing outside the session.

Solution-Focused Brief TherapySFBT

Starts from where you want to end up rather than from how you got here. Sessions look for the times the problem is already smaller and work out what is different about those, so the number of sessions tends to be short and the work concrete.

Also listed

• Existential Therapy

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Melissa practises through BetterHelp, so the route in is BetterHelp's. This is that sequence, written by Maker Therapy from the platform's published process - not a description of Melissa's own practice, and not a promise about how quickly anything happens.

1. A questionnaire, not a booking form

   BetterHelp opens with a set of questions about what you are dealing with, what you want from therapy, and any preferences on the therapist. You are not booking Melissa at this point.

2. Naming Melissa specifically

   BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Melissa is a step you have to take. There is a field for requesting a specific therapist during sign-up, and you can switch afterwards from your account. Starting from a link on this page does not by itself assign you to Melissa.

3. If the caseload is full

   You will be offered somebody else rather than put on a waitlist. Worth knowing, because it is easy to assume a match is the person you asked for.

4. The first conversation

   A first session is typically history and orientation: what brought you, what has been tried, what you want to be different. It is also where the questions in the next section belong.

5. If the fit is wrong

   Changing therapist on BetterHelp does not need a reason. A first session that does not click is common and is not a verdict on therapy. That option existing is the main practical difference between a platform and a private practice.

05 · Before you commit

4 questions worth asking Melissa

Built from what Melissa actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Melissa's - Melissa has not seen them and is under no obligation to answer any of them.

• “You list both Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Client-Centred Therapy. Which do you lean on with someone like me?”

  Those two point in different directions - one structured and led by the therapist, the other led by you. The answer tells you what the sessions will actually feel like.

• “How do you decide when someone is ready to work on a traumatic memory itself?”

  Pacing is the biggest safety question in trauma work. A clear, unhurried answer here matters more than any credential.

• “With 27 years in, what has changed most in how you work?”

  Long experience is only an advantage if it has been examined. This tends to surface whether it has.

• “How do you handle the gap between sessions if something comes up?”

  On BetterHelp this varies a great deal by therapist. Better to know the rhythm now than to discover it on a bad week.

06 · Practical details

Credentials and licensing

Credential

LMHC

Licensed in

Florida

Licence

FL LMHC MH7533

Licence number

MH7533

Licence expires

31 Mar 2027

NPI

1972588283

Years in practice

27

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Melissa's name, credential, state, subjects, approaches and biography are read from BetterHelp's therapist roster, which Maker Therapy re-reads once a day; this page reflects the reading taken on 9 Oct 2026. The licence number and NPI are cross-checked against public registers.

The plain-English method descriptions, the first-session walkthrough and the questions are written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such wherever they appear.

Maker Therapy is not BetterHelp, does not take bookings, and has not met Melissa. There are no reviews or ratings on this page because we have no way to verify one. If you start therapy through a link here, we may be paid a commission - it does not change your price and it does not affect who appears here or in what order.

Something on this page wrong or out of date? Report it and it will be checked against the source.