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LCSW

Maria Clara Salazar-Pretto, LCSW

  • Experience20 years
  • LocationFlorida
  • Focus areasStress and Anxiety, Relationship, and Family
  • Therapy approachesInternal Family Systems and Client-Centered Therapy
  • LanguagesEnglish and Spanish
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About Maria

Maria Clara Salazar-Pretto brings two decades of clinical social work experience to clients seeking practical, empathetic support.

Background and approach

She works from a client-centered, goal-oriented stance and integrates approaches such as Internal Family Systems, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Mindfulness Therapy, and Solution-Focused techniques to tailor care to each person’s needs.

Trained in both Colombian and U.S. cultural contexts and fluent in English and Spanish, she combines life experience with professional training to relate across cultural backgrounds. Her career has included work in hospitals, health centers, and personal agencies, supporting adults across the lifespan from young adults to older adults.

As an LCSW licensed in Florida (FL LCSW SW7853), she emphasizes practical skills for coping with stress, anxiety, grief, relationship and intimacy challenges, trauma and abuse, parenting and caregiving stress, career transitions, and other life changes. Sessions focus on validation, active listening, and strategies that help identify unhelpful thought and behavior patterns while opening new pathways toward wellbeing.

Clients can expect collaborative, hands-on work oriented toward real-world results, whether addressing emotional regulation, self-esteem, compassion fatigue, ADHD concerns, or complex life events. She invites those ready to take a first step to explore a supportive therapeutic partnership.

Integrating Approaches in Online Therapy

Internal Family Systems offers a way to explore inner parts and their relationships, helping clients understand protective or wounded aspects of themselves and work toward greater internal harmony. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy focuses on identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors, providing concrete skills for managing anxiety, depression, and everyday stressors. Client-Centered Therapy emphasizes empathy, validation, and collaborative goal setting so the client’s own priorities guide the work.

Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. The therapist will work with each client to assess needs, goals, and preferences and then blend methods that feel most helpful. That flexibility allows sessions to evolve as progress is made and new challenges arise, with the client shaping the pace and focus.

Online therapy offers practical benefits like greater scheduling flexibility and the ability to meet from home or other convenient locations. Video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging provide multiple ways to engage with care, supporting continuity when life gets busy or when distance is a factor. These options make it easier to access consistent, skill-focused treatment that can be adapted to individual rhythms and needs.

Frequently asked questions

What kinds of concerns does she help with?
She works with issues such as stress, anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse, grief, relationship and intimacy-related problems, parenting and caregiver stress, career changes, ADHD, and related areas like codependency and communication difficulties.
What is her therapeutic style and approach?
Her style is client-centered and goal-oriented, blending practical methods like CBT, DBT, mindfulness, IFS, and solution-focused strategies to build skills and address patterns that interfere with wellbeing.
How much clinical experience does she have?
She has practiced for 20 years in diverse settings including hospitals, health centers, and personal agencies, working with adults across the lifespan from young adults to older adults.
What are her credentials and where is she based?
She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) practicing in Florida with the license FL LCSW SW7853 and holds graduate training in clinical social work.
Does she work with clients in other languages or internationally?
She is bilingual in English and Spanish and accepts international clients, enabling cross-cultural communication and support.
In what formats are sessions offered?
Sessions are available via video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to provide flexibility in how clients connect with therapy.
How is pricing handled for sessions?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
What are the steps to begin working together?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.

Areas of expertise

Primary focus

Stress, AnxietyRelationship issuesFamily conflictsTrauma and abuseDepression

Also works with

GriefIntimacy-related issuesParenting issuesAnger managementSelf esteemCareer difficultiesCoping with life changesCoachingCompassion fatigueADHD

Additional focus areas

AbandonmentAdoption and foster careAging and geriatric issuesBlended family issuesCancerCaregiver issues and stressCodependencyCommitment issuesCommunication problemsCoping with natural or human-caused disasterDependent personalityDivorce and separationDomestic violenceEating and food-related issuesEmptinessFamily of origin issuesFamily problemsFirst responder issuesForgivenessGuilt and shameHospice and end-of-life counselingImmigration issuesInfidelityIsolation / lonelinessLife purposeMidlife crisisMood disordersMulticultural concernsPanic disorder and panic attacksPostpartum depressionPost-traumatic stressPregnancy and childbirthSelf-harmSexual assault and abuseWomen's issuesWorkplace issuesYoung adult issues

Therapeutic approaches

Client-Centered TherapyCognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)Mindfulness TherapySolution-Focused TherapyInternal Family Systems

Experience

20+ years

Licensed

Florida

Languages

English, Spanish