Dr. Michael Mangino
Entering therapy is an invitation to take the story of your life off the shelf, open the book, and revisit the pages that might have been bent, torn, or bookmarked for later. It is my highest privilege to be invited into your story to help explore, understand, and re-write the chapters you wish to visit.
Michael is a clinical psychologist who specializes in individual, couples, family systems, and group therapy. He graduated with his doctorate from Long Island University in Brookville, New York with a concentration in “High-Risk” Families, meaning family subsystems (i.e., couples, siblings, parent-child dyads, chosen families, etc.) that have found themselves either in witness of or engaging in repetitive, dysfunctional patterns. Michael employs a relational approach in therapy, emphasizing that the different relationships clients engage in are often the source of many psychological and physical stressors. His main goal in therapy is to work collaboratively and authentically with clients in order to develop a trusting relationship so that therapy feels safe enough to begin unpacking and reworking past and present relational dynamics.
Michael has particular expertise in identity formation, anxiety and depressive disorders, chronic health and somatic complaints, grief/loss, and psychological, emotional, physical, and sexual trauma. He especially enjoys working with folks from the LGBTQ+ communities and, specifically, has an interest in helping LGBTQ+ individuals and couples navigate the potential complexities of their relationships. Michael also is energized by working with straight, gay, and bisexual men and unpacking issues surrounding masculinity, sexuality, and gender role expectations. As such, he utilizes a multiculturally humble approach to therapy, and draws on psychodynamic, relational, cognitive-behavioral (CBT), and systems theories to emphasize the various identity vectors each client presents with and to meet clients “where they are” when they begin treatment. As a practitioner of group therapy, Michael also firmly believes that being able to safely navigate difficult interpersonal dynamics within a group might facilitate psychological growth in a uniquely rewarding fashion.
Working with Michael means that you will enter into a warm and engaging space with a therapist who regards you as a true equal in the therapy process. He is constantly in admiration of the strength, bravery, and resilience clients bring to sessions and will work with you to foster such attributes if you feel you are lacking them. Michael provides a safe, non-judgmental, authentic, and open space so that he can truly listen to what is and is not being said. Ultimately, he seeks to help clients reconnect with feelings of self-love and interpersonal effectiveness so that they can leave feeling confident in their identities and thoughtful in their relationships.
- I live by the philosophy that
- love is the most powerful and accessible tool to us all.
- I could spend every day
- playing tennis, baking (or pretending to be a contestant on the Great British Bake Off), and walking near the water.
- As a therapist, I
- believe the biggest agent of change is the therapeutic relationship, as dynamics that are played out in real-world relationships will often be played out with me; therefore, I will always work my hardest to make sure you feel heard, understood, safe, and appropriately challenged in our work together.
Credentials
- Psy.D., Clinical Psychology; Long Island University (APA-Accredited)
- Concentrations: High-Risk Families; Serious Mental Illness
- M.S., Applied Psychology; Long Island University (APA-Accredited)
- B.A., Psychology, Minor in Gender Studies; Loyola University Maryland; Cum Laude
- Post-Doctoral Fellowship, Tuttleman Counseling Services; Temple University; Group Therapy Concentration
- Pre-Doctoral Internship, Tuttleman Counseling Services; Temple University (APA-Accredited); Sexual Assault Counseling and Education (SACE) Unit
Affiliations
- Philadelphia Society of Psychoanalytic Psychology
- American Psychological Association
- Division 39 (Psychoanalysis)
- Division 43 (Couples and Family Psychology)
- Division 44 (Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity)
Honors
- Psy.D. Disadvantaged Fellowship; Long Island University
- Award for Trauma Research and Excellence; Long Island University
- Award for Best Research Focused on the Mission of “Serving Underserved Populations”; Long Island University
- Student Choice Award Recipient: Unity Award; Loyola University Maryland
- Student Choice Award Recipient: A.L.I.V.E. Award; Loyola University Maryland
Allyship
- LGB, Transgender, Gender Non-Binary, Asexual, Questioning
- Poly- and ENM-Affirming
- Sex-Positive
