TELEHEALTH THERAPY FOR VIRGINIA RESIDENTS
You’re holding everything together. Let’s talk about what’s holding you.
You’re showing up. You’re doing the thing. But somewhere between your to-do list and your actual life, something got lost. And you’re tired of pretending it didn’t.
Melissa Walker is a Resident in Marriage and Family Therapy practicing under the clinical supervision of Lisa Xantus, LPC (License #: 0701009998)
WHO I AM
Hi. I’m Melissa.
I’m a Resident in Marriage and Family Therapy and a PhD student completing my degree in counseling psychology. I hold a Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy with a concentration in couples therapy.
Now before you read “couples therapy” and think this page is not for you because you are single or not here about a relationship — stay with me. My concentration is in couples therapy, but my primary clientele is women navigating various phases of life and various relationship issues, including their relationship with themselves. That includes your relationship with anxiety, with your own worth, with your past, and with the version of yourself you are still trying to figure out.
I practice under the active clinical supervision of Lisa Xantus, LPC. What that means for you: I am not out here winging it. Every case I carry has a second set of trained eyes on it. You get me, and you get the guidance behind me.
I work exclusively with adults who are residents of the state of Virginia. All sessions are via secure telehealth — from wherever you feel most comfortable in the state, as long as it is a private space where you are the only one present and you are not actively operating a vehicle.
WHO I WORK WITH
You might recognize yourself here.
You are functioning. Maybe even doing well in certain parts of your life. But on the inside, there is this anxiety you cannot explain — this thing you cannot put your finger on, whether it is related to a relationship that keeps hitting the same wall, grief you have been carrying quietly, a version of yourself you barely recognize anymore, or just the weight of managing everything with no real place to put it down. You are not broken. You are just carrying too much, for too long, without enough support.
My clients are adult women navigating one or more of these:
Anxiety and overthinking
Career transitions and imposter syndrome
Emotional dysregulation
Low self-worth and perfectionism
Grief and loss
Family and parent dynamics
Relationship stress
Autonomy and independence
Military family stress
Work stress and burnout
Life transitions
Boundary setting
Self-esteem
Relationship with self
Substance use concerns
Couples are welcome too. If you and your partner keep hitting the same argument, talking past each other, or feeling more like roommates than partners, I want to talk to both of you.
Couples therapy with me is not about who is right. It is about whether you two can get on the same team.
LET’S CLEAR SOMETHING UP
Therapy and coaching are not the same thing.
People sometimes come to me having tried coaching or wondering if they even need therapy. Here is the honest difference:
Therapy (what I do)
Explores root causes of patterns, not just surface behaviors
Addresses mental health symptoms like anxiety, depression, and grief
Works through past experiences and how they show up today
Licensed, clinically trained, and supervised
Can be covered by insurance
Bound by ethical codes and confidentiality laws
If you are dealing with anxiety, depression, unresolved grief, trauma, or relationship patterns that keep repeating themselves, you need therapy, not a strategy session. That is what I am here for.
Coaching (not what I do)
Goal-focused and forward-looking, not designed to process the past
Does not diagnose or treat mental health conditions
Primarily about performance, productivity, and next steps
Not required to have clinical licensure
Typically not covered by insurance
Not bound by the same legal confidentiality protections
HOW THERAPY WORKS WITH ME
My entire goal is to work myself out of a job.
Therapy with me has a purpose and a finish line. We work toward something, and when we get there, I will tell you to leave me alone and go live your life. I call it graduation.
Step 1
Free 15-minute consultation
This is not a sales call. This is us getting a feel for each other. You tell me what is going on, I tell you how I work, and we both decide if this is a good match. You can ask me anything. No commitment required.
Step 2
Intake session (your first session)
The first session is me collecting a lot of background information. I want to understand who you are, what you have experienced, and what you are carrying. By the end of session one, we will set goals together, and I will give you your first homework assignment. Yes, there is homework, and I actually do check it. The real therapy takes place during the time when we do not see each other.
Step 3
Weekly sessions (doing the actual work)
We meet weekly. Sessions are 53 to 60 minutes and focused. We use approaches like CBT, motivational interviewing, and EFT, and I know that psychology mumbo jumbo might not mean much to you, but let’s just say we use real tools to do real work. Growth happens between sessions too, which is why homework exists.
Step 4
Biweekly sessions (you are getting it)
Once real progress has been made on your goals, we shift to every two weeks. Homework starts to wind down because you have been practicing on your own. The training wheels are loosening on purpose.
Step 5
Monthly check-ins (proving it to yourself)
Monthly sessions confirm that what you learned is not just working in our conversations, it is working in your actual life. We assess, adjust, and prepare you to walk out the door.
Step 6
Graduation
When you are consistently living what you have learned and you no longer need me to do it, we celebrate that. I will tell you: stop calling me. Do not email me. You are fine. Go live your life. That is graduation.
Therapy is not a straight line, and I need you to know that upfront.
Sometimes we take a few steps back before we move forward. Sometimes a new stressor shows up and adds chapters we did not plan for.
And sometimes things happen after graduation that bring you back — that is part of the journey too. All of it is okay. We navigate it together.
FROM THE BLOG
Thoughts on therapy, life, and everything in between.
