Our Story
Our mission is to provide comprehensive, holistic healthcare to patients and their families. As the parents of four children and a former Navy veteran, we know the importance of family and embracing each person’s mental health needs. Here at Chesapeake Bay Psychiatry, we look at each individual holistically and strive to provide the best mental health care for individuals and families to reach their maximum potential. We define “family” as those you choose to embrace or celebrate as your own family, including LGBTQIA families!
We started this practice to work with a broad range of family-centered issues. Whether you are navigating pregnancy, are an adolescent struggling with ADHD, a parent struggling with depression, a young adult transitioning to independence, a middle-age women dealing with menopausal life changes, or a transgender woman or man transitioning and starting hormonal therapy, we use our own personal experiences to connect and relate to clients and help them thrive. Not only do we treat most common psychiatric conditions, we also have a broad range of experiences to draw upon, for Dr.Michele Davidson, this includes 25 years as a nurse-midwife, 20 years as a university professor, and two decades of parenting four children with Nathan Davidson, including children with special needs.
Women’s & Perinatal Mental Health
Dr.Michele’s passion is women’s and perinatal mental health. As a nurse-midwife, I delivered over 1,000 babies and cared for thousands of women as they have embarked upon motherhood. Her past experience in that role and her role as a professional and a mother, has given her a unique perspective and understanding of the many transitions women face throughout their lives.
Besides caring for women in pregnancy and the postpartum period, Dr. Michele provides care to women and evaluates the role that hormones play in mood and determines how abnormal hormone levels can result in psychiatric symptoms. She provides consultations for preconception planning and pregnancy and postpartum care. Dr. Michels also works with women or couples experiencing infertility, miscarriage and fetal loss, infant loss, and parents facing specific issues, such as special needs parenting, empty nest adjustments, and other parenting issues.
As a women’s health expert, she often sees that during pregnancy, the physiological and hormonal changes, become the dominant focus of care. The emotional and psychological changes associated with pregnancy and parenthood are often overlooked. During the perinatal period, many women revisit unresolved issues from childhood, previous traumas, or issues surrounding trust, relationships or abuse. Dr. Michele is here to help women and their families address mental health issues and emotional experiences during this transition period. Dr.Michele is trained in Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy which is indicated for trauma work for individuals who have past trauma from childhood, birth trauma, dysfunctional relationships, or military service.
As one of the few providers who specialize in caring for women with postpartum psychosis (PPP), she has completed additional certifications, including being a certified forensic nurse (CFN), a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE), and have also completed an advanced certification in perinatal mental health (PMH-C). As the Postpartum Psychosis Coordinator for Postpartum Support International, she works with women and their families with PPP on a regular basis.
As a researcher, she developed the Davidson Conceptual Model of Prodromal Postpartum Psychosis Symptomology, which is used to develop postpartum psychosis care management protocols. I speak nationally on women’s mental health and postpartum psychosis and also provide testimony as an expert witness on matters related to postpartum psychosis and perinatal forensic issues. Dr.Michele is also available to provide one-time comprehensive consultations as well as second opinion consultations on postpartum psychosis management in addition to providing therapy and coaching for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders.
General Psychiatry
We help individuals struggling with multiple mental health issues, including anxiety, depression/ mood disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, panic disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, grief, bereavement, adjustment disorder, and other common mental health conditions. Our practice is inclusive of a broad range of families including military families, LGBTQIA families, families with children with neurotypical children, those with children with special needs, military families and culturally diverse families.
We use a holistic approach that includes therapy, self-care skills, cognitive-behavioral strategies, and medication management. We provide extensive resources to my clients to help them learn about their mental health and ways to support and nurture their minds and body. We work with other professionals to ensure the optimal state of health for my patients.
As a university professor, Dr. Michels has helped hundreds of young adults with learning challenges and academic transition issues, including ADHD, thrive in the academic setting. She has an advanced certification as an ADHD-CCSP (Certified Clinical Services Provider). Dr. Michele combines behavioral strategies with medication management to help individuals with ADHD learn strategies to overcome distractibility, lack of focus, and hyperactivity.
“As a university professor, I have helped hundreds of young adults with learning challenges and academic transition issues, including ADHD, thrive in the academic setting…”
-Dr. Michele Davidson
Our Team
Hayden Davidson
At Chesapeake Bay Psychiatry, we really are about family! Hayden Davidson is our office manager and patient care coordinator. Hayden worked in the private psychiatry management field for over a year before heading up to Chesapeake Bay Psychiatry. Hayden is known for putting patients at ease, assisting patients with navigating the mental health system, and answering questions in a timely manner. Hayden is a 2020 graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University summa cum laude with a Bachelor’s of Science in Clinical Neuroscience. His hobbies include boating, weight lifting, and diving.
