Marissa Katz Bellani , LMHC

Marissa Katz Bellani is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) based in Hawaii who combines creative expressive arts with evidence-informed counseling methods to support people facing stress, anxiety, relationship challenges, grief, depression, addictions, trauma, and related concerns. She brings a warm, interactive style to her work and invites clients to explore inner strengths through music therapy and other expressive arts techniques alongside more traditional therapeutic approaches.

Trained at Lesley University with a focus in Music Therapy and Expressive Arts Therapies, she centers the client as the expert in their own life while offering compassionate guidance and practical strategies. Her practice emphasizes meeting people where they are, validating their experience, and collaboratively moving toward greater balance, resilience, and self-actualization.

Marissa integrates person-centered principles with approaches such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy when appropriate, tailoring sessions to each person’s needs, goals, and preferences. She works with individuals coping with life transitions, attachment or family-of-origin issues, caregiver stress, chronic illness, and concerns around intimacy and self-esteem. Her combined focus on creativity and clinical technique aims to make therapeutic work both healing and accessible for a wide range of clients.

Integrating Therapeutic Approaches in Online Care

Marissa frequently uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help people notice difficult thoughts and feelings without getting stuck in them and to align actions with personal values - this approach is often useful for stress, anxiety, and making meaningful life changes. She also applies Client-Centered Therapy, offering a supportive, nonjudgmental space where the client’s perspective guides the process and healing is fostered through empathy and acceptance. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is another tool she employs to identify and shift unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviors, supporting practical coping skills for depression, anxiety, and mood-related concerns.

Choosing the right approach is part of the work together. Marissa collaborates with clients to determine which methods fit their needs, goals, and preferences, adapting techniques as therapy progresses to ensure the best possible match.

Online therapy with Marissa includes video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging, which offers flexibility for scheduling, supports access from different locations, and makes it easier to maintain continuity of care during life transitions or busy routines. Licensed professionals can use these formats to provide consistent, client-focused treatment in ways that suit individual lifestyles.