About Melissa
Melissa Torres is a licensed clinical social worker in Virginia with six years of experience helping people cope with anxiety, depression, trauma, and addiction. She offers support for stress, grief, relationship and intimacy concerns, self-esteem struggles, career changes, and compassion fatigue. Melissa works in both English and Spanish and aims to make therapy feel approachable and understandable.
Her sessions emphasize the connection between body and emotion. She uses somatic approaches to notice how tension and sensations show up in the body.
Background and approach
Melissa combines that with practical therapies like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to build skills for everyday life. She aims to create a calm, nonjudgmental space where people can name what is painful and learn new ways to cope. In conversation she helps clients spot patterns, practice specific tools, and set realistic goals.
Work often focuses on attachment wounds, boundaries, codependency, and grief from loss or separation. Melissa also supports people dealing with substance use, domestic violence fallout, dissociation, and family-of-origin issues. She pays attention to communication problems and the impact of caregiver stress.
Therapy balances talking with gentle body-based awareness and concrete behavior changes. Many clients find the combination of somatic awareness and evidence-based exercises useful for regaining a sense of control. Melissa partners with each person to tailor sessions to their needs and pace.
Her bilingual approach aims to respect cultural background while focusing on healing and practical progress.
How somatic and evidence-based approaches work online
Somatic work helps people notice physical sensations that connect to emotions and stress. Online sessions can guide gentle awareness of breath, posture, and bodily cues to reduce tension and bring clarity about feelings. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) focuses on identifying values, accepting difficult thoughts, and taking small committed actions toward a meaningful life. ACT is helpful for anxiety, depression, and motivating change when avoidance feels strong.Finding the right approach is part of the process, and the therapist collaborates to choose methods that match each person's needs and goals. That means trying somatic practices, ACT exercises, or practical cognitive tools and checking in about what feels helpful. The aim is to tailor work so clients leave sessions with clear next steps they can use between meetings.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to fit different schedules and comfort levels. Video lets the therapist and client see posture and facial expression, while phone or text can feel easier for shorter check-ins. These options increase flexibility and make it simpler to practice skills regularly without long travel or schedule strain.
Frequently asked questions
What issues does she help with?
What is her general therapeutic style?
How much clinical experience does she have?
What credentials and location are listed?
Which languages are supported for sessions?
What session formats are available?
How are fees and payment handled?
How does someone begin working with her?
Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
Also works with
- Abandonment
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Codependency
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Dependent personality
- Depression
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Infidelity
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Post-traumatic stress
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Relationship issues
- Self esteem
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 6 years
- Licensed
- Virginia
- Languages
- English, Spanish