Merle Montalvo, LCSW
Licensed in Mississippi · 23 years in practice
Merle Montalvo is a licensed clinical social worker in Mississippi who helps people facing stress, anxiety, grief, depression, anger, and struggles with self-esteem.
License and registration
- LCSW, Mississippi
- C5031 · expires April 2027
- NPI
- 1558753707 · national provider identifier
- Years in practice
- 23
- Languages
- English
Details are as listed on the therapist's public professional profile. You can check any license with the state board and any NPI with the national registry.
About Merle
Merle Montalvo is a licensed clinical social worker in Mississippi who helps people facing stress, anxiety, grief, depression, anger, and struggles with self-esteem. She also supports people dealing with relationship and family concerns, trauma and abuse, career changes, ADHD, and the strain of life transitions.
Her path to social work began as a midlife change, and she frames that experience as part of how she relates to others. Merle draws on 23 years of experience across outpatient, inpatient, intensive outpatient (IOP), home health, and hospice settings.
Background and approach
She uses that broad background to understand both short-term problems and longer patterns. Merle’s style is adaptable and down-to-earth. She mixes practical strategies with time to reflect on patterns that keep people stuck.
Sessions focus on clear goals and small steps people can try between meetings. Among the approaches she uses are cognitive behavioral techniques and solution-focused methods to target current problems and build coping skills. She also uses mindfulness practices and insight-oriented work to help people notice thoughts and feelings and make different choices.
People who work with Merle can expect a collaborative, paced approach. She aims to tailor sessions to each person’s needs and life situation. Her experience with hospice and geriatric issues also informs how she supports end-of-life concerns and caregiving stress.
Focus areas and approaches
Everything Merle lists on their public professional profile, in their own terms.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Grief
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Depression
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Trauma and abuse
- Career difficulties
- Coping with life changes
- Compassion fatigue
- ADHD
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Codependency
- Communication problems
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Divorce and separation
- Family of origin issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Isolation / loneliness
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Mood disorders
- Post-traumatic stress
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Self-love
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
Approaches Merle names
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
Naming an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each therapist lists and does not check training records.
Online support
How therapeutic approaches translate to online care
Merle uses cognitive behavioral therapy to help people identify unhelpful thoughts and try small behavior changes that reduce symptoms. CBT can be useful for anxiety, depression, stress, and mood issues because it focuses on clear steps and practice between sessions.She also incorporates mindfulness therapy, which teaches simple attention and breathing skills to lower reactivity and increase awareness of feelings. Mindfulness can help with grief, anger, isolation, and trouble concentrating. Motivational interviewing appears in her work as a way to clarify what matters to someone and build their own motivation for change in areas like career moves or coping with life transitions.
Finding the right mix of methods is part of the work. The therapist and client discuss goals, try approaches, and adjust based on what feels most helpful. That collaborative process helps match techniques to the person’s needs and preferences.
Online sessions offer practical flexibility. Video calls let people use visual cues and have longer weekly sessions, phone sessions can be easier when bandwidth is limited, live chat works for brief check-ins or when typing feels more comfortable, and text-based messaging supports ongoing contact and quick updates between meetings. These options make it easier to fit therapy into work, caregiving, or health-related schedules.
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Questions people ask
What kinds of problems does she help with?
She supports people facing stress, anxiety, grief, depression, anger, low self-esteem, trauma and abuse, relationship and family concerns, career and life changes, ADHD, and compassion fatigue.
How would you describe her therapeutic style?
Her approach is adaptable and collaborative, combining practical skill-building with moments of reflection to notice patterns and try new behaviors.
What is her clinical background?
She has 23 years of experience working in outpatient, inpatient, intensive outpatient (IOP), home health, and hospice settings.
Where is she licensed and based?
She is licensed as an LCSW in Mississippi and practices from that state.
Can sessions be held in languages other than English?
Sessions are offered in English.
What session formats are available?
Work can be done by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging.
How are fees handled?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions according to therapist availability.
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