Melissa McHenry , LPC, LCPC

Melissa McHenry is a licensed counselor based in Illinois with 23 years of clinical experience supporting individuals and families. She holds the LPC and LCPC credentials - Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor - and brings advanced training with master’s degrees in both adult psychology and child psychology. Her practice focuses on helping people manage stress and anxiety, navigate relationship challenges, and heal from trauma and abuse, and she also works with depression, self-injurious behavior, PTSD, and domestic violence.

Melissa approaches care with respect, sensitivity, and compassion, shaping conversations and treatment plans to reflect each person’s unique circumstances. She emphasizes practical, individualized strategies and aims to meet clients where they are, tailoring interventions to specific strengths, needs, and goals. Taking the first step can require courage, and Melissa acknowledges that decision while guiding people toward clearer coping skills and more effective ways of relating to themselves and others.

Throughout her long career she has worked across a range of life stages and concerns, offering structured support for coping with change, grief, anger, self-esteem and career-related stressors. Her approach is collaborative, adapting methods to best fit each client rather than applying a one-size-fits-all model.

Evidence-Based Approaches Delivered Remotely

Melissa uses evidence-based therapeutic techniques that focus on practical skill building and trauma-responsive support. One approach emphasizes skill-based strategies for managing stress and anxiety, teaching concrete tools for emotion regulation, relaxation, and problem solving to reduce daily overwhelm. Another approach centers on trauma-responsive care, offering sensitive, paced work to address the effects of trauma and abuse and to support recovery from symptoms such as intrusive memories and hypervigilance.

Finding the right method is part of the therapeutic process, and Melissa collaborates with each person to determine which approaches best match their needs, goals, and preferences. She adjusts recommendations over time so that the plan evolves with progress and changing circumstances, creating a collaborative decision-making process between therapist and client.

Online therapy with video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging provides flexibility for people with busy schedules or limited local options. These formats allow licensed professionals and therapists to offer consistent, accessible care across distances, making it easier to fit regular sessions into daily life while maintaining an ongoing therapeutic connection.