About Michelle Lange, Psy.D.
The foremost thing I want you to know about me as a therapist is that I opened my practice because I want to be able to provide the highest quality therapeutic experience I could envision. This entails:
- Collaborating on a clear plan and therapy goals from your first session
- Being able to schedule you quickly, even when unanticipated circumstances arise and you need support sooner than our next regularly scheduled appointment
- An easy-to-navigate client portal
- It’s not a transactional relationship to me– you will be cared for as my client
Credentials
I am a Licensed Clinical Psychologist based in Newport News, VA, and licensed to practice throughout VA (since 2010). I also have limited authority to practice inter-jurisdictional telepsychology in over 30 states via PsyPact.
Style of Therapy
I work from a humanistic perspective, meaning I meet you where you are with empathy and respect for practical obstacles you may be facing. I employ cognitive-behavioral, solution-focused, interpersonal, and psychodynamic interventions, tailoring the interventions to client needs.
Why Relaction?
Fit
One of the best predictors of success in therapy is the client’s feeling of alliance with the therapist, meaning that if the client feels comfortable enough to partner with the therapist to work toward change, that desired change is more likely to be achieved. If my areas of focus are a good fit for the issues that have brought you to seek therapy, that may help you feel comfortable partnering with me in working toward meeting your goals.
Expertise
I have been licensed as a Clinical Psychologist since 2010. I have also taught at the university level for over a decade, staying engaged with research and developments in the field. After this much time and experience doing this work, I have arrived at a place where I feel clarity and confidence in my abilities both to provide exceptional therapeutic support and to know when alternative or additional resources are needed. It is my pleasure and my honor to do high quality therapeutic work.
Availability
While our work is primarily accomplished via sessions scheduled in advance, I guarantee timely appointments for existing clients even when unexpected needs arise.
Individual & Couples Therapy
$200
Per Session (55 minutes)
$225 Initial Session Fee
Dr. Lange works with clients 18 and older.
All sessions are virtual.
Private pay and the following insurances are accepted for Virginia residents (outside of VA may vary, requires verification) for individual counseling: Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and United Healthcare. Your insurance company may have negotiated a lower rate for you than the standard rate.
Private pay is accepted for couples and family therapy.
Don’t see your insurance here? Dr. Lange is also able to provide documentation for insurance reimbursement for out of network clients.
Mental wellness check up
$300
Much like how you go to your doctor for annual physical check ups, we can address your mental health and overall wellness goals and develop a plan for how to work toward those within the next 6 months. This entails two virtual sessions and you will be provided with a written plan.
Private pay and the following insurances are accepted for Virginia residents (outside of VA may vary, requires verification): Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and United Healthcare. Your insurance company may have negotiated a lower rate for you than the standard rate.
Don’t see your insurance here? Dr. Lange is also able to provide documentation for insurance reimbursement for out of network clients.
Speaking & Consultation
Dr. Lange is available for speaking engagements, trainings, and consultation on a variety of topics relating to mental health and wellness and will tailor the content and format to your organization’s needs.
Areas of Focus
All things relationship
I root for marriages and partnerships to work, if that’s what the couple wants, and I will support that goal through teaching and reinforcing effective relational communication skills. I also have personally been through divorce and come out on the other side, and will support those who are navigating that process. I have an excellent co-parenting relationship and know how to achieve that. Healthy, functional relationships, and the self-respect and respect for your partner that are the fundamental basis for such a relationship, enhance our quality of life greatly. I take a great deal of pride in working with clients toward achieving this in their own lives, wherever you are in your journey.
College students
I have worked on a college campus for over a decade, first as a therapist and then as a faculty member. I know how to navigate resources in and around university communities to help college students succeed academically, personally, and with their mental health goals.
Social struggles
I have a special interest in working with high-functioning neurodivergent adults (this includes Asperger’s Syndrome, high functioning autism, and even if you have not received a diagnosis but feel you are often missing something when it comes to connecting with others).
General mental health concerns
I regularly work with people struggling with life changes, anxiety, and depression. I come by my expertise in these areas through personal and professional experience.
FAQs
Relaction is a portmanteau of relaxing and taking action, consistent with what I have learned over the course of my career about finding balance between those things as being key to a happy, healthy life. In our work together, I will help you find that balance.
Primarily, the ease of access and convenience. With in-person appointments, you must factor in transportation time to and from; whereas virtual sessions can be done from any private location of your choosing. It saves you significant amounts of time.
If you forget about an appointment, you will often be able to still make it to a virtual appointment, as it only takes seconds to log in from your computer or mobile device. I check in with clients if they are running 5 minutes late.
Also, you are not as bound by geography in finding the right therapist for you, which allows you to focus on fit. While all therapists are limited by their license as to where we are able to practice, I am licensed throughout all of Virginia, as well as able to practice telehealth in a limited capacity in all states that have enacted PsyPact legislation (over 30 states).
Some people strongly prefer having an in-person connection. I was initially worried that the sense of connection and caring would be lost in virtual therapy when we were forced to make this change in 2020, but I have not found this to be the case in my experience. Still, this is for each individual to decide, and if virtual therapy is not for you, that is okay.
The other downside is potential connection problems. I encourage clients to attend sessions somewhere where they are reasonably sure they have a good internet connection. If connection problems arise, I will call you.
In the first session, I will ask questions to get a clear sense of the circumstances that led to you seeking out counseling, and we will establish treatment goals. I will make a recommendation to you of a treatment plan through which I believe those goals would be attainable. In subsequent sessions, our focus will be on working toward meeting the goals we set in the first session.
I am not going to tell you one of you is right and the other is wrong. I will not side with one of you. Couples counseling is fundamentally about helping couples to communicate better– to speak and listen to each other more effectively and intentionally. I will teach you how to do this, and facilitate effective communication around the issues that are bringing you in.
Accessible Mental Health
I believe mental health support should be accessible to all. Here is what I do to do my part in making it so:
WellReads
WellReads is a bimonthly wellness book club I created and lead. It is free to all adults. It is not therapy, but it does encourage regular focus on topics of mental wellness, both as you are reading and discussing the book selections. You can learn more and receive reminder emails about our book selection and meetings here.
Strangers on the Internet
This is a podcast I co-host, along with law professor Irina Manta, where the topic of conversation is how to make safe and enjoyable romantic connections in the era of online dating, and how to work through and move forward from challenges that may arise. This is not therapy, but it provides psychological perspectives and educational content that can help people navigate online dating. It is free to all and available on all major podcast platforms. You can learn more here.
Wellness Resources for College Students
I created the Wellness at CNU website for Christopher Newport University students and families; however, those who attend or have loved ones attending other universities may also be able to benefit from the information provided on this website. The primary aim of the website is to help students and their families to find the right words to describe what is causing distress and to connect them to a range of appropriate resources, including relevant on-campus offices as well as other community and national resources to support well-being. This is free to all and available here.
Free Therapy
At my sole discretion and as my schedule permits, I am willing to offer a limited number of free (pro bono) sessions for clients who a) have a demonstrated financial need with documentation (for example, eligibility for Medicaid or Medicare), b) can demonstrate current/recent use of mental wellness resources (this is broadly defined and can be low or no cost activities, such as regular exercise or using meditation videos), and c) are an appropriate fit for my areas of work. At times where I am able to accept a new no-pay client, application instructions will be available here.
