Marlene Ibarra
You might look like you have it together on the outside—but inside, you feel overwhelmed, anxious, or stuck. Maybe you’re constantly overthinking, carrying a lot on your own, or feeling disconnected from yourself or your relationships. I’m a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with 10 years of experience. I provide compassionate, trauma-informed care for individuals, couples, and families navigating anxiety, life transitions, relationship challenges, grief/loss, and past trauma.
I balance empathy with gentle challenge, supporting clients in understanding patterns, strengthening boundaries, and building healthier relationships with themselves and others.
My approach is warm, grounded, and direct. I’ll meet you with empathy, but I’ll also help you understand your patterns, gently challenge what’s no longer serving you, and build practical tools that create real, lasting change. My goal is for you to feel more grounded, understood, and confident in how you move through your life and relationships. I am also a mother of three and the founder of Groundwork Counseling Center, a nonprofit organization focused on expanding access to mental health care.
First session
Our first session is a chance for us to get to know each other in a safe, supportive space. We’ll talk about what brought you to therapy, your goals, and what you hope to gain from our work together. There’s no pressure to share everything at once—my priority is helping you feel comfortable, heard, and supported.
Strengths
My greatest strength as a therapist is my ability to create a safe, grounded space where clients feel genuinely seen, heard, and supported. I bring a trauma-informed, culturally responsive approach that honors each client’s lived experience while also helping them build practical tools for change. I balance empathy with gentle challenge, supporting clients in understanding patterns, strengthening boundaries, and building healthier relationships with themselves and others. Clients often share that they feel deeply understood and empowered through our work together
Ideal clients
You may be feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or disconnected—from yourself, your relationships, or your sense of direction. Many of my clients struggle with anxiety, stress, trauma, or difficult life transitions and want deeper self-understanding and lasting change. You’re open to reflection, growth, and building healthier patterns, even if you’re not sure where to start.
Treatment methods
Integrative
I’d like to get to know my clients before I choose treatment modalities. This allows me to customize treatment to whatever my clients may need.
Location
Virtual sessions
Identifies as
Hispanic / Latinx
Woman
Top specialties
Anxiety
Depression
Grief
Other specialties
Coping Skills
Family Conflict
Learning Disabilities
Self Esteem
Women's Issues
Serves
Adults (18 to 64)
Licensed in
CaliforniaLicense 135151