Downingtown’s Michele Paiva, known as the Finance Therapist to over 13,000 of her Instagram followers, is a licensed psychotherapist and certified financial educator who also virtually counsels her clients on financial stressors, writes Erin McCarthy for The Philadelphia Inquirer. 

Paiva, who also hosts a podcast about money and mental health and has also authored several books on financial wellness, started focusing primarily on finance counseling more recently, after she noticed a trend emerging in her trauma-therapy sessions. 

“I started just realizing that money was at the crux of every one of many clients’ [struggles] — even if they came in because of childhood trauma,” she said. “It ended up always coming back to money.” 

Paiva never asks her clients to share sensitive financial information with her. 

“It’s more of helping people become free of the stress of money,” she said. “All I need to know is ‘What is the problem?’” 

Working on their financial problem usually leads to addressing underlying mental health issues. 

This type of therapy is becoming increasingly more popular, with people of all backgrounds, genders, and socio-economic statuses seeking help, said Paiva. 

Read more about Finance Therapist Michele Paiva in The Philadelphia Inquirer. 

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