Clinical therapy & coaching · Charlotte, NC

Where you can finally exhale.

Elizabeth Counseling and Wellness is a therapy and coaching practice for people ready to feel more like themselves — grounded, supported, and gently challenged to grow.

Individual therapy Couples & Gottman Method Life & growth coaching

A calm place to do brave work.

Therapy and coaching that meet you as a whole person.

Some seasons ask more of us than we know how to carry. Whether you're moving through anxiety, a hard transition, strain in your relationship, or a quiet sense that something needs to change — you don't have to sort it out alone.

At Elizabeth Counseling and Wellness, care is warm and unhurried, grounded in evidence, and shaped around what actually matters to you. Come as you are. We'll take the next step together.

Ways we can work together

Support for the whole of your life

Three paths, one intention — helping you feel steadier, more connected, and more yourself.

Individual Therapy

A confidential space to understand yourself, ease what hurts, and build a life that feels like your own — at a pace that respects where you are.

Couples Therapy

Rebuild connection, communicate without the same old fights, and repair trust — using the research-backed Gottman Method for lasting change.

Coaching

Forward-focused sessions for the goals and growth just outside your reach — direction, momentum, and accountability toward what's next.

How care feels here

Rooted, evidence-based, and deeply human

Warm & unhurried

You set the pace

No rushing, no scripts. We go where you're ready to go, and honor the courage it takes to be here at all.

Grounded in research

Approaches that hold up

Methods with real evidence behind them — chosen and tailored for your goals, not one-size-fits-all.

Whole-person

Care that connects

Mind, relationships, and daily life are woven together. We tend to the whole picture, gently.

“Healing rarely arrives all at once. Like anything worth growing, it opens slowly — steadily, and in its own good time.”

The Elizabeth Counseling and Wellness philosophy

Getting started

Beginning is the hardest part

So we've kept it simple. Three small steps, and someone in your corner the whole way.

01

Reach out

Send a note through the client portal. Tell us as much or as little as you'd like — there's no wrong way to start.

02

Free consult

We'll talk for about 15 minutes to see how it feels and whether we're the right fit. No pressure, no commitment.

03

Begin together

Book your first session and settle in. From here, we move at your pace toward what you came for.

Add Masha's photo here — a warm, natural headshot works best

MashaLCMHC-A · NCC

Meet your therapist

Hi, I'm Masha.

Therapist, coach, and your partner in whatever comes next.

I started Elizabeth Counseling and Wellness because I believe therapy should feel deeply human — warm, honest, and truly collaborative. Not a lecture, and never a place where you have to have it all figured out. Just two people working together on what matters most to you.

I'm a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor Associate and National Certified Counselor (NCC), offering individual therapy, couples therapy, and coaching to adults in Charlotte and across North Carolina.

LCMHC-A Board Certified (NCC) Charlotte, NC In-person & telehealth

My story

How I found my way to this work

For as long as I can remember, I've been drawn to the moments when people let their guard down and finally say the true thing — the fear underneath the frustration, the hope underneath the hurt. That's where change tends to begin, and it's the part of this work I love most.

My path into counseling came from a simple conviction: that everyone deserves a space to be fully honest without being judged, and real tools to build a life that feels like their own. That conviction carried me through my master's in clinical mental health counseling at Wake Forest University, where I trained to pair genuine warmth with approaches that actually hold up under research. [Add a sentence about what first drew you to becoming a therapist.]

Today, I get to do exactly that — with individuals untangling anxiety, stress, and big life transitions, and with couples finding their way back to each other. Whatever brings you here, my hope is that our work together feels less like fixing what's broken and more like coming home to yourself.

How I work

What it's like to work together

You bring the honesty — I'll bring the structure, the research, and a genuinely warm place to land.

Warm & human

You don't have to perform

You'll never have to impress me or say things perfectly. I'll meet you as a real person — with warmth, humor, and zero judgment.

Evidence-based

Grounded, not one-size-fits-all

I lean on approaches with strong research behind them — CBT, the Gottman Method, mindfulness — and shape them around you, not the other way around.

Collaborative

We steer this together

We'll set the direction as a team and check in on how it's going, so our work stays tied to what you actually want to change.

Background

Credentials & training

The training behind the warmth — so you know you're in capable, caring hands.

Licensure & certification

Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor Associate (LCMHC-A) in North Carolina, practicing under board-approved clinical supervision while completing the path to full licensure. Nationally board certified as a National Certified Counselor (NCC) by the National Board for Certified Counselors.

Education

Master's in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Wake Forest University, a CACREP-accredited counseling program.

Specialized training

Gottman Method — couples therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Mindfulness-based approaches

Areas of focus

Anxiety, stress & burnout
Couples & relationships
Life transitions & identity
Self-worth & personal growth

Outside the therapy room

A little more about me

When I'm not in session, you'll usually find me [enjoying slow mornings with good coffee, long walks, and time with the people and pets I love — add your own here]. I think the things that keep us grounded outside of therapy matter just as much as the work we do inside it.

I do this work because I've seen what changes when someone finally feels understood. If any of this resonates with you, I'd love to hear what's bringing you here.

“The bee in our crest is how I think about this work: small, steady, unhurried visits — and over time, a whole garden in bloom. Nothing forced, nothing rushed. That's the kind of growth I hope to help you find.”

Services

Care shaped around your life

Whether you're here for yourself, your relationship, or a goal you're reaching for, every path begins with a free consult — so we can find the right fit before anything else.

Individual Therapy

For the weight you've been carrying quietly.

Clinical therapy for adults navigating anxiety, low mood, stress and burnout, self-worth, grief, and life's bigger transitions. Together we'll make sense of what's happening, ease what's painful, and build tools and insight that last well beyond our sessions.

Anxiety & overwhelm
Depression & low mood
Stress & burnout
Life transitions
Self-esteem & identity
Grief & loss

Format: 50-min sessionsWhere: In-person & onlineCadence: Weekly to start

CBTACTMindfulness-basedPerson-centered

Couples Therapy

For the two of you, finding your way back.

Grounded in the Gottman Method — one of the most thoroughly researched approaches to relationships — couples work helps you break out of the cycles that keep hurting, hear each other again, and rebuild friendship, trust, and intimacy. Whether you're in crisis or simply want to grow closer, there's a way forward.

Communication cycles
Recurring conflict
Rebuilding trust
Emotional distance
Intimacy & connection
Life & family transitions

Format: 50–80 min sessionsWhere: In-person & onlineBegins with: A shared assessment

Gottman MethodRelationship assessmentEmotion-focused

Coaching

For the next chapter you're ready to write.

Coaching is future-focused and goal-driven — distinct from clinical therapy. It's for when you're basically well but want traction: clarifying what you want, building better habits, navigating a career or life pivot, and staying accountable to the change you're after. Practical, energizing, and firmly on your side.

Goal & direction setting
Career & life pivots
Confidence & mindset
Habits & follow-through
Work–life balance
Accountability

Format: 45-min sessionsWhere: OnlineCadence: Weekly or biweekly

Goal-orientedStrengths-basedNon-clinical

Fees & insurance

Clear, upfront, no surprises

Investing in your wellbeing should feel straightforward. Here's how it works — and we're always happy to talk it through.

Session fees

$150

Per 50-minute individual session. Couples and coaching rates shared during your consult.

Insurance

An out-of-network provider. We'll gladly provide a monthly superbill you can submit to your insurer for possible reimbursement.

Sliding scale

A limited number of reduced-fee spots are held for those who need them. Please just ask — access matters here.

Research & insights

Care you can trust, grounded in evidence

Good therapy isn't guesswork. The approaches here are chosen because they've been studied, tested, and shown to help real people — and because they leave room for you as an individual.

The evidence base

40+

The Gottman Method

Built on more than four decades of research with thousands of couples, the Gottman Method identifies what actually helps relationships thrive — and turns those findings into concrete, teachable skills.

CBT

Evidence-based therapy

Approaches like cognitive-behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy are among the most extensively studied in mental health, with strong support for anxiety, depression, and beyond.

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Measurement-based care

Briefly checking in on how you're doing over time isn't just paperwork — research shows that tracking progress helps therapy work better and keeps our focus on what's genuinely moving.

How progress is tracked

Your progress, gently measured

From time to time you'll fill out a short, validated check-in. It takes a couple of minutes and gives us a shared, honest picture of what's improving — so therapy stays responsive to you, not to a fixed formula.

Brief & validated

Short questionnaires with real research behind them — never busywork.

Tracked over time

We watch the trend together, so wins are visible and stuck points surface early.

Used to adjust

If something isn't working, the data helps us change course sooner rather than later.

From the practice

Notes & reflections

Occasional writing on therapy, relationships, and the everyday work of feeling better — in plain, human language.

Getting started

What actually happens in a first session

Nervous about your first appointment? Here's an honest look at what to expect — and why there's truly no wrong way to begin.

Relationships

The myth of the conflict-free relationship

Happy couples aren't the ones who never fight. Here's what the Gottman research reveals about arguing well — and repairing after.

Everyday wellbeing

When rest feels impossible

If slowing down makes you anxious, you're not broken. A gentle look at burnout, nervous systems, and learning to let go.

Client portal

Everything in one secure place

Scheduling, messages, telehealth, and paperwork all live in the SimplePractice client portal. Whether you're already a client or booking a first consult, you'll be taken straight there — so our time together can stay focused on you.

Schedule & reschedule

Book, move, or cancel appointments in a few taps.

Message securely

Reach out between sessions through private messaging.

Join telehealth

Enter your video session with one secure click.

Forms, invoices & documents

Complete intake paperwork and view billing anytime.

Your client portal

Scheduling, secure messaging, telehealth, and your documents — all handled on SimplePractice.

Both buttons below take you to SimplePractice, the secure platform that hosts your records and scheduling. You'll sign in there — never on this website. This site collects, transmits, and stores nothing about you.

Client login Book a free consultation

Both links open SimplePractice in a new tab.

Powered by SimplePractice · private & secure

Data & privacy

Your privacy, in plain language

Coming to therapy shouldn't mean surrendering your privacy to the internet. This page explains — plainly, with nothing buried — what happens to your information when you visit this site or reach out. The short version: this website collects nothing about you, on purpose.

What this website collects about you

Nothing. Not as a slogan — as a checklist your own browser enforces:

No analytics or tracking

No Google Analytics, no advertising pixels, no session recording, no fingerprinting. We cannot see who visits this site — and no one else can see it through us.

No cookies, nothing stored

This site sets no cookies and saves nothing in your browser. There's no cookie banner because there's nothing to consent to.

No forms, no accounts

There is nowhere on this website to type your name, email, or anything else. Anything you share with the practice happens through the secure portal — never here.

Enforced, not just promised

A security policy built into every page blocks requests to outside services entirely — even the fonts are served from this site. If a tracker were ever added by mistake, your browser would refuse to load it.

One honest technical note: like every website, these pages are delivered by a hosting provider (GitHub Pages), whose servers momentarily process your device's IP address in order to send you the page at all. That's the plumbing of the web, not tracking by the practice — we don't receive or review visitor logs, and nothing on these pages reports your visit to anyone.

Where your information lives

Your care information never touches this website

Everything about your care lives somewhere built for it — and that's by design.

The system of record

SimplePractice, under a BAA

Scheduling, secure messaging, telehealth, billing, and clinical records all live in SimplePractice — a HIPAA-compliant electronic health record platform that signs a Business Associate Agreement with the practice and encrypts your information in transit and at rest.

The handoff

Nothing travels with the click

The portal buttons here simply open SimplePractice in a new tab. This site passes along nothing about you — it even strips the referrer, so SimplePractice isn't told which page you came from.

The boundary

This site never handles health information

No protected health information is ever entered on, sent through, or stored by this website. If a page ever asks you to type something personal anywhere but the SimplePractice portal, close it and tell us.

Reaching out

Email, phone & texting — the honest fine print

You're always welcome to call or email about scheduling and general questions. But standard email, voicemail, and text messages are not encrypted end-to-end, so they aren't the right place for the personal details of your health or your story — that protection is exactly what the secure portal is for.

A good rule of thumb: logistics through any channel you like; anything sensitive through the portal or in session.

“If you remember one thing from this page, let it be this: nothing you do on this website is recorded — and everything about your care lives inside SimplePractice's locked room, not out here.”

Records & retention

Your records, your rights

Clinical records are part of responsible care. Here's how they're kept, for how long, and what you can ask of us.

How records are kept

Session notes, intake paperwork, and billing records live in SimplePractice, encrypted in transit and at rest. They're accessible to your therapist and — as North Carolina requires during associate licensure — reviewed in clinical supervision with a board-approved supervisor, who is bound by the same confidentiality.

How long they're kept

Clinical records are retained for [X years after our last appointment — confirm with the NC board and your attorney]; records for clients under 18 are kept [until age 18 plus X years]. When a record's retention period ends, it is securely destroyed.

What you can request

You can ask for a copy of your records, request corrections, ask for restrictions on how your information is used, and receive an accounting of certain disclosures. Start any of these with a message through the portal — no special form needed to ask.

The full legal notice

This page is a plain-language summary — it doesn't replace the Notice of Privacy Practices you'll receive and sign at intake, which covers confidentiality and its narrow legal limits in full. Your therapist will walk through those limits with you before you begin.

This page was last updated in August 2026. Questions about any of it are welcome — ask in session, through the portal, or at hello@elizabethcounselingandwellness.com.