About Murad Counseling

Direct, Evidence-Based Therapy With a Human Being in the Room

Felix Murad brings together structured, evidence-based treatment and thoughtful, person-centered clinical judgment. You shouldn’t have to choose between feeling understood and receiving care that directly addresses the patterns keeping you stuck. The best care offers you both.

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Felix Murad, M.Ed., LPC-S, LMHC, CMHC, NCC · Licensed by the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council.

Felix Murad, M.Ed., LPC-S, OCD and anxiety therapist providing telehealth therapy in Texas, Washington, New Hampshire, and Florida
Why This Practice Exists

Support Matters. So Does Knowing What to Do Next.

People arrive here at every stage. Some are considering therapy for the first time; others are building on earlier work. They share a desire to understand the mechanism maintaining the problem and to treat that mechanism directly. Feeling understood is necessary. It is not sufficient.

At Murad Counseling, structured treatment gives you a clear plan from the very first sessions. You’ll know what we’re working toward, how we’ll measure progress, and what successful completion may look like.

Treatment here includes:

  • Accurate assessment before intervention
  • A clear formulation of what maintains the problem
  • A treatment rationale you can question
  • Measurable goals set collaboratively
  • Progress reviewed against those goals
  • Discharge planning was discussed from the beginning
  • An interesting, sometimes funny human being supporting you on your journey.
Clinical Philosophy

Person-Centered Does Not Mean Directionless

My work is grounded in a humanistic, collaborative approach while remaining direct, structured, and clinically accountable. Respecting autonomy does not mean a therapist must be passive or vague; collaboration and sound clinical judgment go hand in hand.

You remain the expert on your life.

Therapy should preserve autonomy, dignity, and informed choice. Decisions about your life are yours; my role is to ensure you are well informed.

I am responsible for clinical competence.

I should know what I am treating, why I’m using an intervention, and when to change course. That accountability rests with me, not with you.

Evidence guides treatment

ERP, EMDR, ACT, CBT, and Habit Reversal Training are used when clinically appropriate, not because they are fashionable or used by default.

Treatment should have a destination.

Goals, progress, and discharge planning are discussed openly. Treatment should continue because it remains clinically useful, not merely because a weekly appointment is available.

Specialization

Specialized Training for Problems Generic Therapy Often Misses

Each area below has a dedicated page that explains the approach and the treatment involved.

OCD & Intrusive Thoughts

Obsessions, mental rituals, reassurance seeking, checking, and avoidance. Treatment uses Exposure and Response Prevention informed by inhibitory learning, targeting the obsessive-compulsive cycle rather than debating each fear.

Anxiety & Panic

Prediction, physiological alarm, escape habits, and safety behaviors that organize life around avoidance. Treatment may use CBT, ACT, behavioral experiments, and exposure to bring about changes in functioning, not merely insight.

Trauma & PTSD

When memory, physiological activation, or relationships keep the past present, EMDR and trauma-focused care are paced to match stability, readiness, and clinical need.

BFRBs: Skin Picking & Hair Pulling

Urges and automatic habit loops are rarely changed by willpower alone. Habit Reversal Training targets awareness, antecedents, stimulus control, and competing responses at the behavioral level.

Credentials & Experience

Training Matters When the Treatment Is Specialized

ERP, EMDR, and Habit Reversal Training require specific clinical competencies. Poorly selected or delivered interventions may be ineffective and cause distress without meaningful therapeutic benefit. Specialized training helps ensure that the intervention aligns with the diagnosis, maintaining mechanisms, readiness, and clinical context.

Credentials do not replace clinical judgment; they hold it accountable to the scope of practice, ethical standards, supervision, continuing education, and the evidence base.

  • M.Ed. in Guidance and Counseling from a CACREP-accredited program
  • LPC-S in Texas
  • LMHC in Washington
  • CMHC in New Hampshire
  • Florida out-of-state telehealth registration
  • NCC
  • More than 10 years of mental health experience
  • Board-approved supervision for Texas LPC Associates
  • Training in ERP, EMDR, CBT, ACT, DBT, CPT, HRT, and trauma-focused care
Working Together

What It Is Like to Work With Me

Candid, collaborative, and specific. Here is the working agreement in plain language.

In session

  • I am direct once you are comfortable, but never out of malice.
  • I will explain what we are doing and why.
  • I will tell you when I think an approach is not working.
  • Humor is welcome when it helps. The work remains purposeful.

Between sessions

  • You may be asked to practice skills or exposures between sessions when clinically indicated.
  • I will not keep you in therapy merely because a weekly appointment is available.
  • I respect autonomy, but I will not pretend every intervention is equally effective.
  • Between-session support through text or message (non-crisis)
Identity & Context

The Whole Person Comes Into the Room

Respect is non-negotiable

This practice does not tolerate hate, racism, harassment, or dehumanization. Therapy here can be direct and challenging without being shaming.

Affirming care is clinical care.

LGBTQIA+ clients are welcome and affirmed. We don’t treat identity as a side issue, a debate, or something to be explained away.

Context comes into the room.

BIPOC, multicultural, immigrant, veteran, religious, nonreligious, and historically marginalized clients are welcome. Culture, family systems, beliefs, and lived experiences may be clinically relevant.

The full person matters

Symptoms are addressed in the context of identity, shame, values, relationships, and history, not in isolation. The work is structured because the whole person matters.

You will be asked to do real work here. You will not be asked to earn basic respect.

Fit

Is This the Right Practice for You?

This practice may be a good fit if…

  • You want structure, not endless reflection without direction.
  • You want a therapist who explains the treatment model.
  • You are willing to practice skills or exposures between sessions.
  • You value honesty over reassurance. I am not a “yes” man!
  • You want evidence-based treatment that still respects your autonomy.
  • You are seeking focused care for OCD, anxiety, trauma, or BFRBs and related conditions.

This may not be the right fit if…

  • You want only a supportive conversation, not behavioral change..
  • You are unable or unwilling to complete the informed-consent, intake, and treatment-planning requirements needed to begin outpatient care.
  • You need a higher level of care than outpatient telehealth can safely offer.
  • You have an active eating disorder or are experiencing severe mental illness.

Neither list is intended as a judgment. If you’re not ready to participate actively in treatment, it may be best to save yourself the expense. I won’t keep someone in therapy simply to fill a weekly appointment. If the work doesn’t feel like a good fit, or you’re not ready to engage with the treatment plan, I’ll let you know directly and respectfully so we can determine the best next step.

Common Questions About Working Together

Direct, friendly, structured, and collaborative, with a strong humanistic foundation. You’ll always have a clear understanding of what we’re doing, why it matters, and how we’ll review progress in relation to your goals.

Yes. OCD and intrusive thoughts are a primary specialty, treated with Exposure and Response Prevention, informed by the inhibitory learning model. The OCD therapy page outlines the full approach.

Yes. EMDR and trauma-focused care are offered, paced to your stability, tolerance, and what your system can realistically hold. See the EMDR therapy page for details.

Yes. Trichotillomania, excoriation disorder, and related BFRBs are treated with Habit Reversal Training and other behaviorally specific interventions. The Habit Reversal Training page explains how the training works.

Murad Counseling is primarily a private-pay practice with limited insurance participation. We may provide superbills for out-of-network reimbursement. Coverage and reimbursement depend on the client’s plan. See the pricing page for current details.

Felix Murad is licensed in Texas (LPC-S), Washington (LMHC), and New Hampshire (CMHC) and is a registered out-of-state telehealth provider in Florida.

That is what the brief consultation is for. You can describe what has been stuck, ask preliminary questions, and receive a direct assessment of whether this practice is appropriate. If it doesn’t seem like the right match or level of care, we may provide reasonable referral guidance.

There is no guaranteed timeline. Structured treatments such as ERP and Habit Reversal Training are often time-limited rather than open-ended, and progress is regularly reviewed against your goals. Course lengths vary.

Next Step

A Brief Consultation Can Clarify Whether This Is the Right Fit.

Request a Free 15-Minute Consultation

Consultation requests are kept confidential within legal and ethical limits.

Felix Murad, M.Ed., LPC-S, LMHC, CMHC, NCC · Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor · Licensed by the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council, Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors · Licensed in Texas, Washington, and New Hampshire; registered to provide telehealth in Florida. To report a concern about a licensed counselor, contact the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council at 1801 Congress Ave., Ste. 7.300, Austin, TX 78701 · bhec.texas.gov