About Marissa
Marissa Alvarez is a licensed master social worker who helps people facing stress, anxiety, trauma and intimacy-related concerns. They also support people navigating LGBT issues and challenges related to ADHD. Marissa writes in a straightforward way and aims to make starting therapy feel manageable.
Marissa approaches sessions with curiosity and practical problem solving. Sessions focus on understanding how past experiences affect daily life and on building useful coping skills. Conversations are paced to match what each person can handle in the moment.
Background and approach
Their clinical work includes interest in attachment, body image, chronic illness and disability, and questions around gender dysphoria and sexual expression. Marissa also addresses communication problems, codependency, and family of origin concerns when these come up in therapy. Marissa has five years of experience as an LMSW - Licensed Master Social Worker.
They blend evidence-based techniques with perspectives informed by intersectional feminist and anti-racist thinking. The goal is practical change rather than jargon-filled sessions. People meet Marissa via scheduled video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text messaging.
Sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time. Marissa practices from Michigan and conducts therapy in English.
Approach and online options for therapy
Marissa uses evidence-based therapeutic techniques that focus on understanding inner parts and addressing trauma responses. One approach centers on noticing different parts of the self and how they interact, which helps people make sense of conflicting feelings and reduce internal pressure. Another approach focuses on trauma-informed strategies that teach grounding and coping skills to manage distressing memories and anxious reactions.Finding the right method is a collaborative process. Marissa will work with each person to try approaches that match their goals, symptoms and comfort level, and adjust methods over time based on what helps most. The therapist treats the choice of technique as part of the conversation rather than a preset plan.
Online therapy here is offered through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video is useful for longer sessions where nonverbal cues matter, phone works well for lower bandwidth or quick check-ins, and live chat or text messaging can fit into busy days or be used for shorter updates between sessions. These options make it easier to schedule consistent care while balancing work, health and daily life.
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What this therapist works with
Most often
Also listed
- ADHD
- Attachment issues
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- BDSM, kink, and alternative sex culture
- Body image
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Communication problems
- Eating and food-related issues
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fertility issues
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- HIV / AIDS
- Immigration issues
- Intimacy-related issues
- Life purpose
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Post-traumatic stress
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Young adult issues
- Experience
- 5 years
- Licensed
- Michigan
- Languages
- English
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