Caterina Martin

Hi, I'm Caterina — an LCSW based in the Philadelphia area offering telehealth sessions to adults across Pennsylvania. My path to this work isn't typical: I spent years on the front lines of the opioid epidemic, supporting people through acute mental health crises and some of the most difficult chapters a person can face. That experience shaped me into a clinician who knows how to stay calm, stay present, and stay with you — even when things get hard.

I work with adults and seniors navigating anxiety, substance use and recovery, life transitions, health conditions, trauma, women's issues, and the kind of chronic stress that makes it hard to recognize yourself anymore. I don't believe in a one-size-fits-all approach, and I won't hand you a worksheet and call it therapy. I bring my full attention to every session — and I meet you exactly where you are, not where I think you should be.

My approach draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), strengths-based, and solution focused frameworks — but I go deeper when we need to. I also use psychodynamic thinking to understand the patterns underneath the surface, because sometimes lasting change requires understanding where something started, not just managing how it shows up today.

In practical terms: we'll identify what's keeping you stuck, explore how your thoughts and behaviors connect, build on what's already working in your life, and develop tools you can actually use between sessions. I also think carefully about context — your relationships, your background, your work, your community all shape your mental health. I don't try to understand a person in a vacuum.

Sessions with me are collaborative and honest. I'll be direct when it's useful, but I'll never push faster than you're ready to go.

Our first session is a real conversation — not a form to fill out. I'll ask what brought you in, what's been weighing on you, and what you're hoping to get from this. We'll move at a pace that feels right for you, whether you come in with a very specific concern or you're still figuring out what you need.

I'm also genuinely interested in you as a whole person — your story, your strengths, the context of your life — not just a list of symptoms. By the end, you should have a sense of whether we're a good fit, and we'll talk about what working together could look like going forward. There's no pressure to commit to anything in the first session. Just show up, and we'll take it from there.