Therapist listings are provided by BetterHelp. We will earn a commission at no additional cost to you if you use our links to purchase.

Dr. Michaela Hammer

Therapist profile

Dr. Michaela Hammer, LCSW

Florida

Dr. Michaela Hammer, LCSW - Relationships and Grief

Continue with Michaela

Key details

  • CredentialsLCSW
  • LicenseLCSW, Florida / SW15412; LCSW, New Mexico / C-11638
  • NPI1750472361
  • Experience35 years
  • LanguagesEnglish
  • LocationFlorida

About

  • Memory and cognitive checks
  • Pet grief counseling
  • CBT and client-centered

About Michaela

Dr. Michaela Hammer is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with 35 years of practice in Florida. She focuses on relationship struggles, grief, depression, anxiety, anger, life transitions, and related concerns that often arrive with change. She works with adults across many life stages and brings long experience supporting people through hard moments.

She emphasizes separating myths about aging and transitions from the facts that matter. That includes memory loss and cognitive concerns; she performs memory and cognitive functioning assessments and reviews research and resources with clients. She also offers counseling for pet grief and loss, a service she developed after receiving referrals from veterinarians and physicians.

Her approach is practical and person-focused. She uses Client-Centered Therapy to follow what matters most to each person, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to spot patterns that fuel distress, and Motivational Interviewing and Solution-Focused Therapy to set realistic goals and steps. She also draws on Trauma-Focused Therapy when past events affect current functioning.

For decades she has provided counseling in offices, homes, schools, nursing homes, and hospitals. That experience includes running memory clinics and providing depression and anxiety assessments. She has offered in-service training on cultural awareness and aging issues to professionals and organizations.

Dr. Hammer describes herself as a seasoned clinician who knows how life’s reactions can compound over time. She supports people who want practical tools, clearer information, and help mapping the next steps when relationships, grief, memory, or major life changes become overwhelming.

How sessions work

How her approaches translate to online work

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on the person’s priorities and how they want to change. In online sessions this means the therapist follows the client’s lead, asking questions and reflecting back what matters most. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy targets the thoughts and behaviors that keep problems going; online CBT sessions often include practical homework and step-by-step skills practice to use between meetings.

Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will talk with the client about goals, try methods that fit, and adjust the plan based on what helps. That collaborative process helps narrow down which tools are most useful for anger, grief, memory concerns, or anxiety.

Session formats are not specified in the biography, so confirm current session options before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life - shorter check-ins can be scheduled during a break, video allows face-to-face conversation without travel, and phone sessions take less bandwidth when needed. The emphasis is on making sessions practical and doable so therapy fits into day-to-day responsibilities rather than adds to them.

Areas of focus

Areas of expertise

Primary focus

Also works with

Stress, AnxietyFamily conflictsTrauma and abuseIntimacy-related issuesParenting issuesAnger managementSelf esteemCareer difficultiesBipolar disorder

Additional focus areas

Aging and geriatric issuesAutism and Asperger SyndromeCaregiver issues and stressCommunication problemsCoping with natural or human-caused disasterDivorce and separationEmptinessFamily of origin issuesHospice and end-of-life counselingInfidelityIsolation / lonelinessLife purposeMidlife crisisMood disordersMulticultural concernsPanic disorder and panic attacksPost-traumatic stressPrejudice and discriminationSeasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)Sexual dysfunctionSexualitySocial anxiety and phobiaVisually impairedWomen's issuesYoung adult issues

Therapeutic approaches

Client-Centered TherapyCognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)Motivational InterviewingSolution-Focused TherapyTrauma-Focused Therapy

Experience

35+ years

Listed in

Florida, New Mexico

Languages

English

Questions

Frequently asked questions

What kinds of concerns does she help with?

She works with relationship problems, grief, depression, anxiety, anger, stress, ADHD, trauma, and other life changes listed in her specialties.

How would she approach work on anger?

She uses approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Client-Centered Therapy to identify triggers, change unhelpful thinking, and develop practical coping steps.

What is her professional background?

She has 35 years of clinical experience, has run memory clinics, performed depression and anxiety assessments, and provided training on aging and cultural awareness.

What credential does she hold and where is she based?

She is an LCSW with licensure in Florida and practices from Florida.

Which languages are sessions offered in?

Sessions are offered in English.

Can international clients work with her?

International clients are not currently accepted.

How much do sessions cost?

Cost varies with location; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.

How do I begin scheduling a session?

Choose the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.

Details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. A license can be checked with the state board.

Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If anyone is unsafe, use the crisis numbers.

Back to all therapists

Dr. Michaela Hammer

Continue with Michaela