Mary Ann Abosch

You may be someone who looks capable on the outside but inside feels anxious, overwhelmed, self-critical, or stuck in patterns you understand but can’t seem to change. Maybe you’ve gotten very good at holding things together, taking care of others, or pushing through—even when something inside you is asking for a different way.

For more than a decade, I’ve helped adults navigate anxiety, trauma, chronic stress, relationship and attachment difficulties, people-pleasing, boundaries, and the lasting effects of experiences that continue to shape how they feel about themselves and relate to others. I also have extensive experience supporting LGBTQIA+ clients and understand how important it is to have a space where your identity and relationships don’t need to be explained, defended, or translated.

I earned my master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University Los Angeles, with specialized training in LGBTQIA+ affirmative psychotherapy. I’m an EMDR Certified therapist and have advanced training in mindfulness and trauma-focused care. My professional background includes both private practice and treatment settings, giving me experience working with a wide range of concerns and levels of distress.

My style is warm, engaged, curious, and down-to-earth. I won’t just sit back and nod. I’ll listen closely, ask questions, offer observations, and help you look at things from different angles. I believe therapy works best when you feel genuinely understood and supported, while also having someone willing to gently challenge the patterns that may no longer be serving you.

Insight is important, but sometimes we can understand a pattern perfectly and still find ourselves repeating it. My approach goes beyond simply understanding why we do what we do. Together, we’ll explore the thoughts, emotions, relationships, and nervous-system responses that may be keeping old patterns in place.

I work from a trauma-informed, relational perspective and integrate EMDR, mindfulness, somatic and nervous-system-informed approaches, attachment work, and CBT. I don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all approach—our work is shaped by who you are, what you’ve experienced, and what you need.

I’m especially interested in what may be happening underneath behaviors that feel frustrating or difficult to change. Often, these patterns began as ways of protecting ourselves, maintaining connection, or getting through difficult experiences. We can approach them with curiosity rather than judgment, helping you feel more connected to yourself and more able to respond to life from choice rather than old survival patterns.

Our first session is about getting to know each other and helping you begin to feel comfortable with me. I’ll be curious about what brought you to therapy, what feels most important right now, and what you’re hoping to get from our work together.

I’ll also want to learn about your history, relationships, family, support system, and other experiences that help me understand the bigger picture of your life. There is a clinical intake involved, but I try to weave those questions naturally into our conversation rather than making our first meeting feel like an interview.

We don’t have to cover everything at once. I’ll help guide the conversation so you don’t have to figure out where to begin, while respecting what you’re comfortable sharing. My goal is for our first session to feel less like filling in the blanks and more like a genuine conversation that gives us a foundation for the work ahead.