Mariah Howard

I’m a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist practicing online in California and in person in Nevada City, CA. I work with teens, adults and couples.

My work is grounded in Holistic Counseling which means that I see people as being an integrated whole - mind, body, emotions and spirit. We aren’t our symptoms, diagnoses or issues waiting to be resolved. Rather each person is a balance of their past, their current lives and what they hope to achieve. Therapy with me is a chance to slow down, and be listened to with gentle compassion, attention and even humor. I offer questions, ideas, and processes tailored to you and derived from my clinical experience.

Whatever is bringing you to therapy – a big life transition, a desire for greater self-awareness, a painful relationship, or overwhelm with the complexity of our world - all parts of you and all of your needs are welcome. Bring yourself, exactly as you are, and the rest will emerge as we explore together.

After nearly a decade of seeing clients, I have developed a way of working that is rooted in the belief that your inner world and intuition are wise and sources of wisdom, knowing what is needed for healing and transformation. From this place of trust, I use Holistic, relational, somatic and Expressive Arts therapies to help foster your relationship with yourself. I offer well-tested practical tools that you can use outside of therapy, along with a keen awareness of what is happening when we’re in session together. Therapy is entirely a time for you, and our connection can help you explore all of your relationships, including the one you have with yourself.

A first session is a chance to experience how I work and for us to begin to get to know one another in a gentle, slowly-paced conversation. I get to learn about what is calling you to therapy at this time in your life, and what you hope will happen as a result of our work. I listen deeply, and tailor questions and reflections that are attuned to what you’re sharing. You can ask any question and you get to set the pace. Over time we explore your past and how it has shaped your present. We also get to uncover what transformations you want to make as trust develops through our time together. I am truly honored to do this work and offer a safe and warm environment for my clients to bring themselves in their fullness. Clients often feel a bit better after the first session, because they experience how I genuinely care for what they are sharing and hoping for from their time in therapy.