Michael Morad-McCoy PhD, NCC
LCPC (Maryland), LPC (DC), LPCC (New Mexico)
phone: 202.505.1848, email: michael@mmcpsychotherapy.com
Maryland Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC): LC12685
District of Columbia Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC): PRC200001432
New Mexico Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC): CCMH0159911
Maybe we need the darkness to know the light.
Madeleine L’Engle
Loss, Identity, Assumptions
Our lives are filled with challenge, struggle, loss. We lose relationships, jobs, opportunities, physical abilities through accident or aging. Of course, we also face the ultimate loss through the deaths of loved ones and our own mortality. These losses challenge our hopes and dreams, our sense of who we are, our assumptions about life and living.
Making Meaning
As an existential psychotherapist, I believe these challenges, struggles, and losses provide us the chance to make meaning of our lives. But we can’t do this simply by “looking on the bright side” or “moving on” or, worst of all, “finding closure.” Giving meaning to our struggles and loss requires a mindful journey through the darker times of our lives. I see my job as a therapist, is not to make you “feel better,” but to be a companion on your journey. I won’t bring timelines or stages or other expectations. I will bring my training and, more importantly, my own experience of making that journey myself. Ultimately, I hope you will see me as a “fellow traveler” in this shared task of making meaning.
Our Stories
One approach I find particularly useful is what is known as “narrative” therapy. The idea is that much of how we experience our struggles and losses comes from the stories we tell ourselves about those struggles and losses. I find it powerful to examine the current stories we tell, and to look for a way to rewrite those stories so they support our sense of what is important, what has meaning, and what makes us feel more authentic.
Couples
My work with couples shares much of this approach, with a particular emphasis on the story of the couple’s emotional connection. I work to help couples explore the things that brought them together and formed their connection. Then I help them tell the story of what happened to that connection in hopes of moving the story forward in a way that uses their entire history to heal or even renew that connection. I find one of the most important qualities couples need in this process is curiosity: curiosity about their own experience, and curiosity about their partner’s experience. As part of this process, I also encourage curiosity about and exploration of losses of safety and intimacy from early caregivers that may be affecting the adult need for safety and intimacy as it plays out in the relationship.
Paying for Therapy & Initial Consult
Because I want to provide services that all potential clients can afford, I use a Pay What You Can model. For more information, see the Paying for Therapy page.
If you wish, I will be happy to schedule a cost-free initial consult where can find out if we might work well together. My contact information is at the top of this page.
