MARISA FOTIEO,
MFT Graduate Intern
Marisa believes every individual has the potential to grow through life's challenges. She is committed to walking alongside her clients on their healing journeys, focusing on solutions over setbacks. Marisa creates a safe space that is unique to each client and built on trust, humility, and connection. She helps clients sort through their thoughts and emotions to make space for new perspectives and possibilities in their lives. Marisa believes that we are all connected by an invisible string, and the therapeutic work done in the counseling space benefits not only the clients individually but also has a positive ripple effect on the community and family systems as well.
With a decade of experience as a teacher and nanny, Marisa has a unique understanding of child development and family systems. She works with adults and couples and also has a specific interest in working with adolescents and children. Marisa’s approach to therapy is integrative and collaborative; she strives to work with individuals as equals to explore experiences and find solutions that resonate. By focusing on inherent strengths, she empowers clients to build resilience and confidence to uncover underlying patterns that shape their emotions and behaviors. Marisa brings her curiosity, love, and sensitivity to the counseling space, always rooted in the understanding that the client is the expert. Her role is to help clients uncover a deeper understanding of themselves, gain clarity, and help guide individuals toward overall healing.
Marisa earned her Bachelor of Arts from Columbia College Chicago and her first Master’s degree from National Louis University in Early Childhood Education. She is pursuing her graduate degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a specialization in Children and Adolescents from Northwestern University. When she is not in the counseling space, Marisa’s favorite place to be is hiking in Michigan, running a 5k in the city, or at a big table surrounded by friends and family, her two dogs, twinkly lights, and good food.