Michael Knapik, LPC, LCMHC

Michael Knapik is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Virginia and a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor (LCMHC) in Vermont, and he is also certified by the National Board for Certified Counselors. He has worked in the mental health field since 2007, bringing 18 years of experience to his counseling practice. Before entering this profession, he spent 30 years as a professional journalist, a background that informs a thoughtful, attentive style of listening and communication.

His counseling orientation emphasizes personal strengths. He approaches therapy with the belief that clients are the experts in their own lives, and that the therapeutic process often involves helping people recognize, access, and apply the strengths they already have. His style is eclectic, drawing from positive psychology, cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, mindfulness-based stress reduction, emotional freedom techniques, solution-focused therapy, compassion-focused therapy, and family systems interventions.

Michael has experience supporting people dealing with stress and anxiety, addictive disorders, grief and loss, depression, self-harming behaviors, and end-of-life concerns. He also brings perspective from 16 years as a hospice volunteer. In his work, he encourages a stance of self-compassion, highlighting the value of small, steady moments of kindness toward oneself as part of meaningful change over time.