Melissa is a Registered Dance/Movement Therapist (R-DMT) and Associate Professional
Clinical Counselor (APCC). She's also a member of the American Dance Therapy Association. She
holds a B.F.A. in Contemporary Dance Performance with a Ballet emphasis from the Boston
Conservatory at Berklee, where she graduated in May of 2020, summa cum laude. She also received
my M.A. from Lesley University in May 2022, in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a
specialization in Dance/Movement Therapy. She is currently awaiting her Board Certification in
Dance/Movement Therapy and full clinical mental health license. She has worked with
adolescents and individuals with special needs in partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient
programs, in the areas of trauma, anxiety, depression, and eating disorders, most of which
included dual diagnoses. She has also worked in residential care and treatment for those 18+ who
sought relief and recovery from mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, trauma,
complicated grief, bipolar disorder, personality disorders, psychosis, co-occurring disorders of
substance misuse, and disordered eating.

She is devoted to using Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT) in conjunction with other expressive
and integrative therapies, to promote healing and positive self-transformation to overcome and
manage trauma, anxiety, depression, eating disorders and other challenges. Her theoretical framework is based upon Chacian DMT, and she uses the Laban Movement Analysis (LMA) to support, observe, assess, and offer treatment with appropriate interventions in my DMT practice. She also uses Carl Rogers’ Person-Centered Therapy (PCT) theories, Motivational Interviewing (MI), Internal Family Systems Therapy (IFS), Grief Therapy,
along with psychological approaches including Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT),
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and
incorporates Mindfulness, Psychoanalytic Theory, Adlerian Psychology, Humanistic Psychology,
Jungian Psychotherapy, and Relational Therapy techniques in her multi-dimensional approach to
treatment. She believes that building a therapeutic relationship tailored to meet the needs of the
moment is a key factor for enhancing insight and growth in every individual.

In addition to her therapeutic work, she dances professionally with The Realm Company, a
contemporary ballet company based in Santa Monica, CA. She also holds a Ballet Teaching
Certification from The Royal Academy of Dance in London and has been a dancer from a
young age as well as a dance teacher. In her spare time, she enjoys dance, pilates, hiking, drinking
matcha tea, and spending time with family and friends.