Practitioner record · Checked 9 Oct 2026

Suzanne Martinez has been in practice 22 years and is licensed in Illinois. Suzanne lists stress, Anxiety, relationship issues and self esteem among 56 subjects on the BetterHelp roster.

Everything below is either quoted from Suzanne's own BetterHelp listing, taken from public licensing records, or written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such. Nothing here is an availability promise, a review, or a rating.

22years in practice
56subjects listed
13approaches listed

01 · Who Suzanne works with

Suzanne works with stress, Anxiety, relationship issues and self esteem

Suzanne lists 20 specialisms and 36 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Suzanne chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

Specialisms
  • Stress, Anxiety
  • Relationship issues
  • Self esteem
  • Career difficulties
  • Coaching
  • Addictions
  • LGBT
  • Family conflicts
  • Trauma and abuse
  • Grief
  • Intimacy-related issues
  • Eating disorders
  • Sleeping disorders
  • Parenting issues
  • Anger management
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Depression
  • Coping with life changes
  • Compassion fatigue
  • ADHD
Also experienced with
  • Abandonment
  • Adoption and foster care
  • Attachment issues
  • Blended family issues
  • Caregiver issues and stress
  • Codependency
  • Commitment issues
  • Communication problems
  • Control issues
  • Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
  • Divorce and separation
  • Emptiness
  • Family of origin issues
  • Family problems
  • Fatherhood issues
  • First responder issues
  • Forgiveness
  • Guilt and shame
  • Hospice and end-of-life counseling
  • Immigration issues
  • Infidelity
  • Isolation / loneliness
  • Life purpose
  • Men's issues
  • Midlife crisis
  • Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
  • Multicultural concerns
  • Panic disorder and panic attacks
  • Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
  • Pregnancy and childbirth
  • Prejudice and discrimination
  • Self-love
  • Social anxiety and phobia
  • Women's issues
  • Workplace issues
  • Young adult issues

02 · In Suzanne's own words

What Suzanne says about the work

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

Great to meet you!

Hi, I’m Suzanne. I have 22 years of experience as a therapist. I have a MA (Master of Arts) at Phillips Graduate Institute, with other work completed at Capella University. I am a LMFT (Licensed Marriage/Family Therapist) in Illinois.

I approach this work with intention and respect. When you sit across from me-even virtually-you have my full attention. My style is direct, honest, and grounded. I won’t overreact, and I won’t minimize your experience. I believe in your capacity to grow, and at times I will challenge you-with care and purpose-to help you move forward.

You can expect steadiness, discretion, and a focus on meaningful change, not just endless processing. Therapy is an investment of your time, energy, and trust, and I take that seriously. My goal is to support you in making real, lasting progress with clarity and confidence. My approach is strength-based, direct, and grounded in action. I focus on what’s working-not just what’s hurting-while helping you recognize patterns, personal responsibility, and how fear or old roles may be shaping your choices. I value honesty in the room. Therapy with me is active and engaged, not passive. Together, we name what’s real, build on your strengths, and move toward decisions that align with your values rather than avoidance.

In our first session, you can expect a focused, attentive presence. I listen carefully and ask thoughtful questions to understand what brings you to therapy and what you’d like to change. Together, we’ll clarify your goals and begin shaping a direction that feels grounded, practical, and aligned with what matters most to you.

Suzanne Martinez, on the BetterHelp listing · read 9 Oct 2026

03 · How Suzanne works

The 11 approaches Suzanne lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Suzanne lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Suzanne'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 Suzanne runs a session.

Acceptance and Commitment TherapyACT
Rather than trying to argue a painful thought away, ACT works on loosening its grip and getting on with what matters to you anyway. Sessions spend real time naming your values, then building action around them while difficult feelings are still present.
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.
Emotionally Focused TherapyEFT
Built for couples and rooted in attachment: the recurring argument is treated as a cycle two people are stuck in rather than as one person's fault. Sessions work to interrupt the cycle and get to what each person is actually asking for underneath it.
Eye Movement Desensitisation and ReprocessingEMDR
A structured trauma protocol in which you hold a distressing memory in mind while following a repeated side-to-side cue. The mechanism is still debated; the outcome data in post-traumatic stress is strong enough that it appears in national treatment guidelines.
The Gottman Method
A couples approach built on decades of observational research into what distinguishes relationships that last. Structured and assessment-led: it maps friendship, conflict and shared meaning, then works on the specific mechanics of how the two of you argue.
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.
Motivational InterviewingMI
A way of talking about change with somebody who is genuinely in two minds about it. The therapist does not argue for the change; they help you say your own reasons out loud, which is the part that predicts whether it happens. Common around substance use and health behaviour.
Narrative Therapy
Treats the story you tell about your life as something that can be examined and retold rather than as the plain facts. Separates the person from the problem - “the anxiety” rather than “your anxiety” - to make room for the parts the current story leaves out.
Solution-Focused Brief TherapySFBT
Starts from where you want to end up rather than from how you got here. Sessions look for the times the problem is already smaller and work out what is different about those, so the number of sessions tends to be short and the work concrete.
Internal Family SystemsIFS
Treats the mind as made up of parts - the critic, the one who withdraws, the one that keeps everything running - each of which is trying to protect you. The work is getting to know them rather than overruling them.

Also listed

  • Existential Therapy
  • Hypnotherapy

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Suzanne 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 Suzanne'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 Suzanne at this point.

  2. Naming Suzanne specifically

    BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Suzanne 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 Suzanne.

  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

4 questions worth asking Suzanne

Built from what Suzanne actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Suzanne's - Suzanne 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.

  • “With 22 years in, what has changed most in how you work?”

    Long experience is only an advantage if it has been examined. This tends to surface whether it has.

  • “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
Illinois
Licence
IL LMFT 166000614
Licence number
166000614
Licence expires
28 Feb 2027
NPI
1982857405
Years in practice
22
Gender
Female
Languages
English
International clients
Not accepted
Listed since
9 Jun 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Suzanne'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 Suzanne. 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.

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