María Benavent

Associate Professional Clinical Counselor

maria@mcaft.com

650-297-3400 x21

Supervisor: Lisa Macias, Psy #32178

Locations: Los Altos & San Jose

Fee: $170

Modalities: Trauma Informed, Compassionate Inquiry informed, Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology, Emotionally-Focused Couples Therapy (EFT), Grief Therapy, Play Therapy, Family Systems, Attachment Based, Somatic.

Areas of Special interest:

Children & Teens: Trauma, Grief, Emotional Dysregulation, Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology, Developmental Identity & Acculturation Issues, Anxiety (Social Anxiety, Separation Anxiety, Academic/Athletic Stress, Perfectionism), Depression, Suicidal Thoughts, Social-Emotional Issues, Peer Challenges.

Adults & Couples: Trauma, Complex Trauma, Early Childhood Trauma, Grief, Loss, Life Transitions, Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology, Mother’s and Women’s Issues, Parenting Support, Couples, Anxiety, Stress, Identity & Acculturation Issues, Depression, Suicidal Thoughts, Work Stress/Job Burnout, Perfectionism.

Approach:

María is passionate about helping children, teens, adults, and couples uncover the underlying ways by which traumatic wounds and fundamental formative experiences affect their emotions, beliefs, and behaviors, limiting their lives and creating disconnection from themselves and from others. She embraces the view that mindful awareness is a necessary precursor for accessing the truth, resources and abilities within ourselves that will bring alignment back into our lives. As such, María strives to create a safe and trustworthy connection with her clients to gently help them explore their stories, fears, emotions, memories, and body signals, so they can ultimately access their inner capacity for healing that will allow them to thrive. Meeting each client in their uniqueness, she draws upon her formation in different therapeutic modalities (especially Compassionate Inquiry, Attachment, EFT, Pre-Perinatal Psychology, and Play Therapy) to support their needs and goals and help them gain clarity, confidence, and a renewed sense of direction and purpose. Her approach is founded on the unconditional determination to understand and respect her clients, and the attentive consideration of their cultural background and particular developmental stage.

Experience:

María started her professional journey as a corporate lawyer in Spain and the UK, and became a therapist after moving to the US, motivated by her desire to support individuals facing difficulty in their lives. Her international professional and personal backgrounds have provided her with a vast experience dealing with cultural diversity, client advocacy, job stress, anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, career choices, life transitions, acculturation processes, and identity challenges. Upon becoming a therapist, María has counseled children, families, and adults dealing with intense trauma, grief, loss, anxiety or depression throughout the Bay Area at different Community Mental Health agencies. She is also a crisis counselor in the Santa Clara County Suicide and Crisis Services, where she supports teens and adults in moments of extreme psychological pain, helping them stabilize and find ways forward. As a mother herself, María also loves to work with young or aspiring mothers and their children in the area of prenatal and perinatal psychology. She focuses on providing effective therapy for prenatal, birth and postnatal trauma with clients of all ages, as well as supporting parents in the development of a nurturing relationship that empowers the connection with their child and prevents the passing of generational trauma.

Education and Training:

• Palo Alto University, MA in Counseling
• Compassionate Inquiry Informed
• Certificate in Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology Educator (in progress)
• Suicide and Crisis Intervention and Counseling Certificate, Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services
• Assessing Safety and Suicide Risk Certificate, 988 Suicide&Crisis Lifeline
• Substance Use and People in Crisis Certificate, 988 Suicide&Crisis Lifeline
• Suicide, Risk Assessment & Treatment Planning via Tele- Mental Health, Palo Alto University
• Children Grief Therapy, Regional Conference, National Alliance for Children’s Grief
• “The Body Keeps the Score -Trauma Healing with Bessel Van per Kolk” Conference, PESI
• Master’s Degree in Legal Corporate Counseling, IE University, Spain
• Master’s Degree in Law, University of Navarra, Spain
• Bachelor’s Degree in Law, University of Navarra, Spain