Focus Areas

Life has many transitions and change can be difficult! Whether it is going away to college, career change, life milestones, caregiving stress, daily stress, burnout, chronic pain, or relationship issues…having someone to help you learn about your strengths and how to adjust to life’s curveballs is essential when it comes to mental health. We will work together to understand what this transition means for you and the best way to deal with it.

Trauma can be defined as an event that creates a stress reaction, which can then lead to a disruption in someone’s life. Many people experience trauma and sometimes more than one traumatic event in their lifetime. Trauma impacts both the mind and body, often requiring a mind and body approach. If you are experiencing persistent stress after an event or events in your life, it may require further assessment and a targeted, evidenced-based approach for recovery. We will incorporate the principles of trauma-informed care, which include safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration, and empowerment. When you feel safe, you can learn, grow, and heal. Healing is possible! Learn more about Cognitive Processing Therapy and Accelerated Resolution Therapy for trauma.

Just like most things, grief is an individual process. Common examples include the death of someone or anticipated death, the end of an intimate relationship, loss of family or friends, loss of a pet, loss of a job, changes in health, and loss of identity during major transitions such as caregiving. Grief can be complicated, may feel like a rollercoaster, and is often messy. You are more likely to cope and adjust to your loss with a better understanding of your grief and your individual needs. You deserve the space to talk and heal with whatever grief you are experiencing.

Our culture overvalues appearance and undervalues internal qualities. What if you thought of your body as a neutral part about you and not necessarily bad or good? It is hard to achieve body neutrality when diet culture impacts every aspect of our lives. It may be an unpopular opinion, but diets don’t work and there is research that supports this. It is pretty common to want to diet, lose weight, or be in a smaller body-Maria has also been there herself! We have been socialized to believe that having a low Body Mass Index (BMI) or a certain size means we are “healthy,” but the BMI is not a good indicator for your health and you may have experienced your BMI driving the conversation at your doctor visits. Poor body image and self-esteem can create a myriad of issues: an unhealthy relationship with food, body, and movement, perfectionism, poor self-esteem, depression, anxiety, intimacy issues, physical health issues, & more. Maria utilizes Health At Every Size® concepts and intuitive eating to help you achieve peace with food, body, and movement.

Depression, mood disorders, and anxiety symptoms are more well-known these days with increased awareness to signs and symptoms, but this does not necessarily mean it is any easier to cope. These conditions can exist on a spectrum and can go unnoticed or could be very disruptive to your life. We will work together to help you increase self-awareness, change thoughts and behaviors, learn emotional regulation skills, and develop a plan so that you can understand and live with symptoms better.

As allies, we believe that psychotherapy must be open and affirming to all and that gender-affirming care saves lives. Together we will explore what you need so that you can live with more authenticity, self-confidence, and self-compassion. Maria is trained in writing letters of support for individuals looking for gender-affirming surgery or medical procedures. A full intake is required prior to writing necessary letters of support.