Healing Strategies

/ Focht Family Practice/
By Michaela Choy, LMFT

By Michaela Choy, LMFT

This is a chaotic time in which we are holding so many painful things - a pandemic, continuous social injustices, concern for our democracy, the list goes on. Holding pain and uncertainty is taxing. Especially during this election, I’m noticing a continued need to process all I’ve been carrying. To find support, I’ve turned to a list cultivated by Jake Ernst, a fellow therapist. He names movement, sound, storytelling, and silence as the core strategies people have leaned on for centuries to heal. I return to this list time and time again. Most of these items are from Jake Ernst, and I’ve peppered in a few of my own ideas.

  • Movement: Solo dance or dance with others, walks, exercise, deep breathing, rhythmic exercises, touch, massage, yoga, stretching, etc.

  • Sound: Listening to music, making music, creating music with others, guided relaxation, drumming, tapping, humming, chanting, sound bathing, low frequency tones (gongs), cooing and coregulation, etc.

  • Storytelling: Talking with a friend, journaling, creative writing, talk therapy, narrative therapy, connecting over shared experiences, making meaning, reading books, watching movies or tv, studying history, reading folklore and fables, etc.

  • Silence: Sitting with thoughts and feelings, leaving space for silence in conversations, meditation, mindfulness, slowing down, sleep, rest, spending time in nature, taking a long bath or shower etc.


/ Focht Family Practice/ /
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Michaela Choy, LMFT

Michaela Choy is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, specializing in therapy services for couples, families and individuals.

Michaela received a Bachelor of Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She went on to pursue her Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from the Family Institute at Northwestern University.

Michaela has experience working with couples and individuals seeking help with anxiety, conflict, communication, and intimacy. She is a trained facilitator of PREPARE/ENRICH, which is an effective assessment tool used in couple therapy.

Michaela’s therapeutic style is strengths-based, warm and collaborative. She focuses on developing relationships with clients built on understanding and trust in order to safely explore change. She believes it is an honor to work alongside clients in their journey and works to promote an environment that is both culturally sensitive and safe.

Michaela’s strongest interests in therapy include working with couples who seek to strengthen communication patterns, improve conflict resolution, and build connection and intimacy. Michaela works with individual clients around family or origin issues, dating, and life transitions.

Michaela is a Clinical member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), as well as a member of the Illinois Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (IAMFT) Chicago Chapter.