01 · Who Marissa works with

Marissa works with stress, Anxiety, addictions and relationship issues

Marissa lists 13 specialisms and 11 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Marissa chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Marissa's own words

What Marissa says about the work

Reproduced in full and unedited - not summarised, not tightened, not rewritten in a house voice.

Marissa Dean, LMFT, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist specializing in trauma-informed care for motivated teens and adults. Grounded in a holistic and integrative philosophy, Marissa combines somatic interventions and psychodynamic principles to address the deep-seated impact of trauma and guide clients towards meaningful growth.

Marissa's practice is deeply client-centered, offering a collaborative, compassionate space where mind and body are addressed together. Passionate about the transformative role therapy plays in expanding self-knowledge and awareness, Marissa helps individuals reconnect with themselves, process past experiences, and cultivate lasting resilience.

For clients who wish to integrate their faith into their healing process, Marissa has professional experience offering Christian-based counseling. She is happy to incorporate spiritual principles, prayer, and scripture into therapeutic work to align your mental health goals with your beliefs. This is always tailored to your preference. Marissa welcomes and respects clients from all backgrounds, beliefs, and walks of life.

Marissa Dean, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Marissa works

The 5 approaches Marissa lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Marissa lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Marissa's - a general explanation of what each method is, so the list means something before you have spoken to anybody. They are not a claim about how Marissa runs a session.

Client-Centred TherapyPerson-centred · Rogerian

The therapist does not steer toward a technique or a diagnosis. They offer sustained, non-judgemental attention and reflect back what they hear, on the premise that people find their own direction when they are genuinely listened to. Often what people mean by “someone who just gets it”.

Cognitive Behavioural TherapyCBT

Structured, present-focused work on the loop between what you think, how you feel and what you then do. Usually means noticing a thought pattern in the room, testing it against evidence, and practising something different between sessions. Among the most heavily researched talking therapies for depression and anxiety.

Dialectical Behaviour TherapyDBT

A structured skills-led adaptation of CBT built around holding two things at once: accepting yourself as you are and working to change. Teaches concrete skills for distress tolerance, emotion regulation and relationships. Developed for people whose feelings arrive at overwhelming intensity, and strongest-evidenced there.

Mindfulness-Based TherapyMBCT

Trains attention on what is happening right now - body, breath, the thought as it arrives - so distress can be observed rather than automatically acted on. Strongest evidence is in preventing depression from recurring, and it is usually taught as a practice you keep doing outside the session.

Psychodynamic Therapy

Works on the assumption that current patterns - in relationships, at work, in how you treat yourself - have a history, and that seeing the history loosens the pattern. Less structured than CBT, usually longer, and more interested in what comes up unbidden than in a weekly agenda.

Also listed

• Somatic Therapy

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Marissa practises through BetterHelp, so the route in is BetterHelp's. This is that sequence, written by Maker Therapy from the platform's published process - not a description of Marissa's own practice, and not a promise about how quickly anything happens.

1. A questionnaire, not a booking form

   BetterHelp opens with a set of questions about what you are dealing with, what you want from therapy, and any preferences on the therapist. You are not booking Marissa at this point.

2. Naming Marissa specifically

   BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Marissa is a step you have to take. There is a field for requesting a specific therapist during sign-up, and you can switch afterwards from your account. Starting from a link on this page does not by itself assign you to Marissa.

3. If the caseload is full

   You will be offered somebody else rather than put on a waitlist. Worth knowing, because it is easy to assume a match is the person you asked for.

4. The first conversation

   A first session is typically history and orientation: what brought you, what has been tried, what you want to be different. It is also where the questions in the next section belong.

5. If the fit is wrong

   Changing therapist on BetterHelp does not need a reason. A first session that does not click is common and is not a verdict on therapy. That option existing is the main practical difference between a platform and a private practice.

05 · Before you commit

3 questions worth asking Marissa

Built from what Marissa actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Marissa's - Marissa has not seen them and is under no obligation to answer any of them.

• “You list both Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Client-Centred Therapy. Which do you lean on with someone like me?”

  Those two point in different directions - one structured and led by the therapist, the other led by you. The answer tells you what the sessions will actually feel like.

• “How do you decide when someone is ready to work on a traumatic memory itself?”

  Pacing is the biggest safety question in trauma work. A clear, unhurried answer here matters more than any credential.

• “How do you handle the gap between sessions if something comes up?”

  On BetterHelp this varies a great deal by therapist. Better to know the rhythm now than to discover it on a bad week.

06 · Practical details

Credentials and licensing

Credential

LMFT

Licensed in

California

Licence

CA LMFT 164517

Licence number

164517

Licence expires

31 Jul 2028

NPI

1154173342

Years in practice

5

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

20 Aug 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Marissa's name, credential, state, subjects, approaches and biography are read from BetterHelp's therapist roster, which Maker Therapy re-reads once a day; this page reflects the reading taken on 9 Oct 2026. The licence number and NPI are cross-checked against public registers.

The plain-English method descriptions, the first-session walkthrough and the questions are written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such wherever they appear.

Maker Therapy is not BetterHelp, does not take bookings, and has not met Marissa. There are no reviews or ratings on this page because we have no way to verify one. If you start therapy through a link here, we may be paid a commission - it does not change your price and it does not affect who appears here or in what order.

Something on this page wrong or out of date? Report it and it will be checked against the source.