- Guilt and shame
- Attachment issues
- Skills for panic
About Melissa
Melissa Contractor is a California LMFT with 36 years of clinical experience supporting adults through depression, anxiety, stress, grief, mood disorders, and bipolar-related concerns. She works with people who are struggling with self-esteem, panic attacks, and feelings of guilt and shame. Sessions address emotional pain and practical problems that get in the way of daily life.
Melissa focuses on communication problems, attachment difficulties, and codependency patterns. She also assists people facing midlife transitions and workplace stress. Her practice includes attention to women’s issues and aging and geriatric concerns informed by long experience working with older adults.
In sessions she uses evidence-based therapeutic techniques to teach concrete skills and to help people process difficult feelings. That can mean practicing tools to manage panic, learning steps to shift negative thinking, or naming and working through shame-related thoughts.
Her style is direct and steady. She helps people notice what keeps them stuck, try different responses, and track what changes over time. Conversations often include skill practice, reflection on relationships, and plans for small, manageable steps forward.
Clients begin by identifying the most pressing problem. From there Melissa outlines possibilities and suggests practical ways to work on them. She asks about values and daily routines, and she adjusts the focus as goals evolve.
Evidence-based techniques and online work
Dialectical skills teach practical coping strategies for intense emotions and panic. These are short, repeatable practices that help lower arousal and create clearer choices in the moment. Cognitive approaches focus on noticing and testing unhelpful thoughts. That helps with persistent guilt, negative self-beliefs, and depressive thinking by shifting patterns one step at a time. Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with the client to pick techniques that fit goals, preferences, and daily life. That means checking what helps, adjusting methods, and reviewing progress together. Confirm current session options before booking, since the original biography does not list formats. Online work can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy week, reduce travel time, and allow shorter check-ins when needed. For practical reasons, some people choose a phone conversation when bandwidth is low or a video session when nonverbal cues matter; discuss what will work best when you book.Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Additional focus areas
Experience
36+ years
Listed in
California
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of issues does she help with?
She works with depression, anxiety, stress, grief, bipolar and related mood concerns, plus practical problems like workplace stress and communication difficulties.
How does she approach guilt and shame?
She uses evidence-based techniques to help people name shame or guilt, practice alternate responses, and reduce the behaviors that keep those feelings active.
What is her clinical experience?
She has 36 years of experience working with adults on mood disorders, panic, trauma-related issues, and life transitions.
What are her credentials and where is she based?
She is an LMFT licensed in California and practices with a focus on adult mental health concerns within that state.
Does she offer sessions in other languages?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can international clients work with her?
International clients are not currently accepted.
How are fees handled?
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin a first session?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Online talk therapy is not emergency care. If you are in danger or thinking about harming yourself, use the crisis numbers.