

Michele "Misha" James-Parham
Pronouns: they/them/elle/él
Reproductive & Perinatal Social Worker, Therapist, & Peer Support Group Facilitator!
Ready to schedule an appointment? Book here!

Michele is available for therapy and social services centered around a client's reproductive, perinatal, and early parenting journey. This includes support around preconception, pregnancy, birth, postpartum, lactation, and adjusting to parenting/co-parenting, as well as, contraception, abortion, loss, surrogacy, and adoption. They have extensive experience working with clients who have a history of sexual abuse/assault and birth trauma, and they center their practise around BIPOC and LGBTQ+ people.
Misha is available to other reproductive and perinatal professionals (birthworkers) for therapy, debriefing, consulting, peer review, and mentoring. Furthermore, they are happy to work with whole birth teams to debrief after difficult births, and Michele offers education on working with LGBTQ+, polyamorous, and kink clients, and clients who have a history of sexual abuse/assault and birth trauma.
Additionally, Michele offers life and spiritual coaching, abortion chaplain services, venting/listening sessions, therapy for LGBTQ+ people aged 14+, sex education, and help navigating and applying for social services & benefits in Pittsburgh/Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.


Available Services
Some services are subsidised, while others are offered on a sliding scale, with 20% of fees going directly to the nonprofit to continue to fund programming and services. No insurance accepted at this time.
All services are provided by Michele “Misha” James-Parham, BSW, MSW, LSW under the supervision of Laura McCarthy, LCSW.
Preconception - Parenting
Abortion
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Pre/Post-abortion Education & Counselling
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Pre/Post-abortion Spiritual Counselling
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Closure/Memorial Ritual
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Resource & Service Referrals
Pregnancy
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Preconception Education & Counselling
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LGBTQ+ Pregnancy Support & Counselling
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Nonmonogamy & Co-parenting Pregnancy Counselling
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Preparing for Birth w/ History of Birth/Sexual Trauma
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Birth Plan Writing Assistance
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Social Services Eligibility & Application Navigation
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Risk Assessments & Screenings
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Resource & Service Referrals
Postpartum
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Birth Experience Debriefing/Unpacking
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Birth Trauma Counselling
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Social Services Eligibility & Application Navigation
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Risk Assessments & Screenings
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Resource & Service Referrals
Parenting
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LGBTQ+ Parenting Support & Counselling
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Nonmonogamy & (Co-)Parenting Support & Counselling
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Parents of LGBTQ+ Children Education & Counselling
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Risk Assessments & Screenings
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Resource & Service Referrals
Pricing: All appointments for BIPOC & LGBTQ+ clients receiving midwifery care or doula/support companion care through Iya Pittsburgh Project are subsidised (until end of postpartum care/discharged from care). Post-discharge of care appointments are $50/hr out of pocket.
All other appointments for people NOT receiving midwifery care or doula/support companion care are available out of pocket via a sliding scale. You will be emailed within 48hrs after booking with payment details; payment will be due BEFORE our session (unless other arrangements have been made). Sliding Scale: $50–$100 per 60-minute session. And 120-minute sessions are available upon request for $150.
Booking: For any of the above services, please use the following link to book an appointment: https://calendar.app.google/6CaStV5TuDpVf3L87
Birthworkers
Birthworker
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Peer Review
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Birth Debriefing
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Birth Debriefing for Birth Teams
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Birth Trauma Support & Counselling
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Preparing to Work w/ Clients w/ a History of Birth/Sexual Trauma
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Professional Consulting
Pricing: You will be emailed within 48hrs after booking with payment information; payment will be due BEFORE our session (unless other arrangements have been made). Sliding scale: $75-$150 per 90-minute session. And 3 hour sessions, ideally for teams/groups, are available upon request for $225.
Booking: For any of the above services, please use the following link to book an appointment: https://calendar.app.google/DSn5JtByToDjLBMx5
Other Services
Other
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Life Coaching
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Spiritual Counselling/Chaplaincy
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Venting/Listening Sessions
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Human Development & Sex Education (Age 12+)
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Exploring Sexuality & Gender Feelings (Ages 14-29)
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Exploring Sexuality & Gender Feelings as a Late Bloomer (Age 30+)
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Homeschooling & Unschooling Support & Counselling
Pricing: You will be emailed within 48hrs after booking with payment information; payment will be due BEFORE our session (unless other arrangements have been made). Sliding scale: $50-$100 per 60-minute session. And 120-minute sessions are available upon request for $150.
Booking: For any of the above services, please use the following link to book an appointment: https://calendar.app.google/e6RwgPAzX1i97kA87
Quick Call/Meeting
Booking: If you are not exactly sure what kind of support you need; you need a quick, non-clinical question answered; have questions about services; or just need to chat for a minute, please use the following link to book a quick chat (15–30 minutes): https://calendar.app.google/fJFxzPDUnUakqDgaA
Pricing: There is no fee associated with these quick chats, but donations made to Iya Pittsburgh or Michele in any amount are always appreciated.
My Philosopy on Therapy
Therapy is not about being fixed, made whole, or perfected. You are not a broken vessel to be repaired or a problem to be solved, but rather a being in a constant state of flux. My role is not to make you more acceptable to others, but to help guide you in finding a deep and gentle acceptance of yourself, exactly as you are.
The struggles you face are not simply symptoms to be diagnosed or feelings to be labelled; they are part of the natural, often challenging, landscape of a human life. Therapy is a space for cultivating curiosity, awe, and compassion, not correction. Here, we can engage in a practice of honest inquiry with your innermost Self, exploring the wisdom within your struggles, stories, joy, and pain, rather than searching for absolute resolve or easy answers.
In our work together, we will explore what it means to be fully present with your experience, without judgment. We will practice letting go of the need to cling to certain outcomes or identities. Instead, we will provide space to the parts of you that have been exiled or silenced, so they may be heard in safety—not just by me, but by you. This is a space where we can nurture a deep sense of self-awareness and self-compassion, recognising that your feelings are not facts to be proven, but passing phenomena to be observed with loving-kindness.
The true work of therapy is to strengthen your relationship with yourself—not as a static entity, but as a human in a constant state of change. This work is rarely neat or comfortable, and that is precisely where its power lies. In fact, it is often in the messiness and discomfort that we can truly see the nature of things. For even in the deepest moments of discomfort, of confusion, and of pain, we can find meaning, begin to relate to our discomfort with wisdom and compassion, and discover the path back to a state of connection—to ourselves, to others, and to our communities.