Michelle is a clinical professional with a deep understanding of young adult addiction and recovery. Her work has ranged from clinical work at Treatment Centers in California, to the town of Ho, in Ghana, West Africa, where Michelle provided case management services at a psychiatric unit with addicts and alcoholics and pioneered an AA meeting for the town. "I was able to educate the staff about the disease of addiction/alcoholism and provide them with AA literature that they had never seen before."

Michelle's journey to become a therapist began with a counseling internship as an undergraduate at University of California, Santa Barbara, ranging from Hospice work, to psychiatric hospital work, and counseling at a dual diagnosis transitional living home. Michelle pursued her Masters of Social Work at Washington University in May '99 and obtained her M.S.W.

With her graduate degree, Michelle began her professional journey on Capitol Hill supporting various Senators and non-profits on legislation and lobbying efforts that revolved around women's issues. From there, she served the homeless population in Washington, D.C., working primarily with those suffering from alcoholism and addiction. She eventually returned to California where she worked at a Suicide Prevention Center and also started her own nutritional consulting business, educating athletes and newly sober folks on nutrition and supplements. Michelle has worked with clients at all levels of care: outpatient, extended, and Residential treatment programs.

Michelle created the concept of "My Sober Coach," which was designed to bridge the gap between treatment and independent living, with the focus being on continued life skills development. The inability to handle random crises that come up in between therapy sessions, AA meetings, and/or outpatient groups can be a detriment to an individual's sobriety. A sober coach empowers the client to fill that gap for him or herself.

"Recovery from alcoholism and addiction can be an excruciatingly painful process without the right supports. Most people in their lifetimes can't get sober. Having a professional sober coach, (not just someone with sobriety alone), helping with daily and sometimes hourly challenges, at the various phases of sobriety, is crucial in not only preventing relapse, but supporting a more peaceful and happy existence in sobriety."

Resume

Alexis received her Master’s in Clinical Psychology with and emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from Pepperdine University. Throughout her professional and academic career she began to specialize in healthy relationships, human sexuality, sex and love addiction, chemical dependency, and psychiatric disorders.

Throughout her professional development, Alexis received training at AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA), working with gay males diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, and sex and drug addiction. During this time she utilized Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Psychodynamic therapy to help individuals process treatment concerns and empower them to find their inner strengths. The training at APLA also allowed Alexis to foster her passion by educating clients on healthy sexuality and intensive life skills training.

Alexis began her training with psychiatric disorders at UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute in clinical research, working with Veterans diagnosed with Schizophrenia and Bipolar disorder. Throughout this experience Alexis provided neuro-cognitive  assessments to Veterans enrolling in outpatient clinical research. Alexis also provided patients with group therapy in a life skills training format to help Veterans with Schizophrenia improve social functioning and symptom management. After developing experience with UCLA she decided to take a position at Del Amo Hospital to gain experience in an inpatient psychiatric setting.

The training at Del Amo Hospital provided Alexis with the foundation to work with inpatient clients experiencing a wide range of psychiatric disorders (Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Anxiety, and Schizophrenia) in addition to chemical dependency and detox issues. Del Amo hospital allowed Alexis to strengthen her assessment and treatment skills through individual and group therapy. This experience also permitted her to aid clients with crisis management, life skills, and discharge planning.

Currently Alexis is working as a sober coach and psychotherapist in private practice with Michelle Hirschman, LCSW where she is also co-facilitating groups on sober coaching and healthy relationships.

Resume