Dr. Michelle Burns, LPC

Dr. Michelle Burns is a licensed professional counselor with two decades of clinical experience. She practices in South Carolina and focuses on practical steps people can use to feel better in daily life. Her work centers on clear goals and steady progress, delivered in a calm, respectful manner.

She meets people where they are and helps them sort through relationship strain, family tension, parenting stress, anger, anxiety, and low self-esteem. She also supports those facing grief, trauma, career shifts, sleep or eating struggles, and questions about life purpose. Her approach is direct and solution-minded while staying attentive to emotions.

Dr. Burns uses cognitive behavioral techniques to help identify patterns of thinking that keep problems alive. She also draws on dialectical behavior strategies to teach coping and emotional regulation skills. Solution-focused methods help keep sessions oriented toward achievable steps and immediate changes.

Sessions typically focus on specific goals such as reducing anxiety, improving communication, managing anger, or building self-compassion. She breaks larger problems into small, manageable tasks and practices skills during and between sessions. Progress is checked regularly and plans are adjusted to match real-life needs.

Her style is straightforward and compassionate. Conversations are practical, with tools and worksheets when helpful. People who want clear direction, skill-building, and steady support often find this approach useful.

CBT, DBT, and Solution-Focused Care Online

Dr. Burns uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people notice unhelpful thinking patterns and change the behaviors that follow. CBT often focuses on small experiments and practical strategies to reduce anxiety, depression, and relationship stress.

She also integrates Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills to teach emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and clearer communication. These DBT-derived tools are useful when intense feelings or frequent conflict get in the way of everyday life.

Solution-Focused Therapy rounds out the work by keeping sessions aimed at what will change next. This approach highlights achievable steps so progress can be seen quickly and adjusted as goals evolve.

Finding the right mix of approaches is part of the process. The therapist works collaboratively with each person to match methods to their goals, needs, and preferences. Treatment plans are revisited and changed when something is not working.

Online sessions are offered by video, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging to make care more flexible. Video allows face-to-face conversation, phone is helpful when bandwidth is limited, chat can work for quicker check-ins, and messaging supports ongoing reflection between live meetings. These options help people fit therapy into busy lives and maintain momentum between sessions.