About Michael
Michael Peterson helps people manage stress, anxiety, addictions, trauma, grief, and depression. He also supports people facing relationship and parenting struggles, career stress, ADHD, bipolar challenges, and compassion fatigue. Michael is a licensed clinical social worker, LCSW, practicing in Illinois with five years of clinical experience.
He keeps sessions straightforward and practical. Conversations focus on what is most pressing and what small steps might help. He aims to make the room calm and nonjudgmental so people can talk about difficult feelings and decisions.
How Michael works
Michael draws on several approaches to tailor work to each person. He uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people notice patterns and try new behaviors. He also uses Client-Centered and Mindfulness techniques to help people slow down, name their experience, and choose actions that fit their values.
Before becoming a therapist he held a range of social work roles, including case work and crisis work. Those roles shaped a practical, problem-solving style that still values listening and respect. He focuses on clear goals and skills that people can use between sessions.
Sessions can address family of origin issues, communication problems, addiction and recovery concerns, caregiving stress, and age-related challenges. Michael encourages people to try different approaches and find what helps them feel more steady and capable.
Michael lists 6 ways of working on the entry:
What Michael works with
The areas below are the ones Michael selected when setting up a profile. The first few are listed as the main focus; the rest are also named.
Also listed
- ADHD
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Anger management
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- Avoidant personality
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Immigration issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- LGBT
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Parenting issues
- Post-traumatic stress
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Relationship issues
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Young adult issues
Training and background
| Register | LCSW |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 5 |
| Languages | English |
| Session format | Online: video, phone, live chat or messaging |
| Country | Illinois |
Memberships and registers are shown as supplied; they are not licences, and this directory does not verify them.
Online support options
How Michael uses therapy approaches online
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, focuses on helping people clarify what matters to them and take action even when feelings are hard. It helps with anxiety, depression, and coping with life changes by teaching ways to notice thoughts without being led by them. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts, feelings, and actions connect and uses practical exercises to change unhelpful patterns; it is often used for anxiety, depression, and stress. Client-Centered Therapy emphasizes a respectful, listening stance where the therapist follows the person's lead and supports self-directed change.Finding the right approach is part of the work together. Michael will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and what has or hasn’t helped before. He uses the conversation to pick techniques that fit the person's needs and adjusts work as progress is made, so therapy feels collaborative rather than prescriptive.
Online sessions can take place by video call, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging to match different needs. Video gives a face-to-face feel, phone can be useful when bandwidth is limited, live chat allows shorter check-ins, and messaging supports ongoing reflection between meetings. These options make it easier to fit therapy into busy schedules and keep contact consistent when travel or time is a barrier.
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Common questions
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A practical next step
Write down two things you would want to be different in six months. That is the most useful thing to bring to a first session, whoever it is with. If you would rather start now than keep reading, online sessions are the quickest route.
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