About Maria
Maria Conforti is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 16 years of experience in varied social work settings across Illinois.
Background and approach
She has practiced in personal and group homes, worked within the justice system, and supported community organizations and nonprofits, bringing a breadth of clinical exposure to each therapeutic relationship. Maria blends training in dialectical behavior therapy with cognitive behavioral strategies and other approaches to craft individualized care that responds to each client's needs.
Her style mixes directness with compassion: she creates a nonjudgmental space while also inviting clients to engage in honest, sometimes challenging work. Maria uses attachment-informed perspectives and occasional psychoanalytic thinking to examine how early experiences shape current patterns, then focuses on practical solutions that promote forward movement.
She aims to equip clients with the skills to live a therapeutic life rather than remain in treatment indefinitely, and she emphasizes collaboration and clear goals throughout the process. Maria works with concerns such as relationship difficulties, trauma and abuse, grief, coaching, and ADHD, and she addresses related issues like communication problems, codependency, and commitment struggles.
Fluent in English and Italian, she accepts international clients and adapts her methods to match individual preferences and goals.
Evidence-based approaches and online care
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps clients clarify values and take committed action even when difficult thoughts or emotions are present, making it useful for issues like avoidance, anxiety, and life transitions. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on identifying and changing unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviors, which is often applied to relationship struggles, mood concerns, and problem-solving. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) teaches skills for emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness and is especially helpful when intense emotions or patterns of reactivity interfere with daily life.Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist works with clients to assess needs, goals, and personal preferences, then combines techniques from these methods to create a tailored plan. Clients are invited to participate actively in deciding what feels most useful so therapy remains responsive and practical.
Online therapy offers flexibility through video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging, allowing sessions to fit around work, caregiving, and other obligations. These formats make it easier to maintain continuity of care across locations, support international clients, and let the therapist apply the same evidence-based interventions in a way that matches each client’s communication style and availability.
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of problems does she address?
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What is her professional background and experience?
What credential and location information is available?
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
- Relationship issues
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
Also works with
- Abandonment
- ADHD
- Antisocial personality
- Attachment issues
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- Avoidant personality
- Body image
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Coaching
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Dependent personality
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Fertility issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Hoarding
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Personality disorders
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Post-traumatic stress
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Existential Therapy
- Gottman Method
- Jungian Therapy
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Narrative Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Somatic Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
- Experience
- 16 years
- Licensed
- Illinois
- Languages
- English, Italian