Hi, I'm Marcelle
I am a Resident in Counseling, working with women and couples navigating big changes in life — new parenthood, a significant loss, complex or changing relationships. My clients want to reclaim the confidence and connection in their lives through the ups and downs of early parenthood, the disorientation of grief, or the shift in self-identity that comes with relationship strain or separation. While often functional and capable, most of the people I work with are tired of the gap between how their lives look and how they feel.
My approach is warm and direct. Sessions feel like a real conversation: I'll tell you what I'm noticing, ask questions worth asking, and offer a perspective when I have one. I'm not a blank screen. I'm also not someone who will push you faster than makes sense or let you stay comfortable when movement is possible.
This work matters to me personally. I've navigated my own versions of the transitions I specialize in — new parenthood, grief, the complexity of close relationships — and while my experience doesn't substitute for yours, it means I'm not working from a textbook. I understand the territory.
Areas of Focus
For partners who keep hitting the same wall and are ready to understand what's driving the conflict.
Support across the full perinatal journey — from fertility challenges through early parenthood.
For women navigating the gap between how their lives look and how they actually feel.
Woven through the work that I do:
EMDR, grief work, and anxiety and depression treatment aren't standalone specialties so much as threads woven through all of the above.
Evidence-based treatment for experiences that haven't resolved through talk therapy alone.
For loss of all kinds — including the losses that don't get witnessed or recognized by the people around you.
For people who are managing well enough on the outside, but exhausted by what it costs them.
Trained for this
I am a Resident in Counseling with over 4 years experience supporting women and couples through challenging transitions. Before training as a therapist, I spent a decade working in health care communication, with a particular focus on women's health — an experience that both shaped my commitment to well-researched, evidence-based methods and my firsthand understanding of balancing high-demand careers with everything waiting for you at home.
I hold specialized certifications and advanced training in my focus areas. My work in couples' counseling is informed by the Gottman Method, where I hold Level 1 & 2 certification, as well as ongoing training in Emotions Focused Couples Therapy. I am also currently completing my Perinatal Mental Health — Certification (PMH-C), with advanced training in supporting pregnancy, the postpartum period, trauma, and anxiety-related concerns. Additionally, I am trained in EMDR, meaning I can incorporate one of the most evidence-based treatments for trauma in our work together as needed.
How I work with you
My approach is direct and exploratory; we'll look at what's driving the pattern rather than simply managing symptoms. Here are a few of the modalities I regularly weave into our work together:
EMDR
Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing
One of the most extensively researched trauma treatments available. EMDR helps the brain reprocess painful memories, changing how they're stored so they lose their grip on your present. Particularly effective for birth trauma, perinatal loss, and experiences that feel stuck despite years of talk therapy.
GM
Gottman Therapy, Levels 1 & 2
Built on decades of research into what makes relationships work — and what quietly dismantles them. The Gottman Method gives couples concrete tools to interrupt cycles of conflict, rebuild trust, and strengthen the friendship underneath the partnership.
ACT
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
ACT focuses less on eradicating discomfort and more on learning to act according to your values despite it. Useful for anxiety, grief, and the life transitions that don't come with a clear roadmap.
PDT
Psychodynamic Therapy
Looks underneath the presenting problem to understand the patterns, relationships, and early experiences that shaped it. Psychodynamic work is slower and more exploratory than skills-based approaches — it's where we figure out not just what's happening but why, and what it would take to change it at the root.
CBT
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Interrupts the thought patterns driving anxiety, depression, and avoidance. CBT is structured and practical, with work both in and out of session. Particularly useful for the kind of high-functioning anxiety that doesn't look like a problem from the outside but costs you constantly.
EFCT
Emotions Focused Couples Therapy
Looks underneath the argument to the attachment fears driving it. EFCT helps couples recognize the cycle they're stuck in and rebuild a secure, responsive bond instead of just managing the fight.
Education & Licensure
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Resident in Counseling #0704016835 (Supervised by Megan MacCutcheon, LPC, #0701005482)
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Northwestern University, M.A. with Academic Distinction, Clinical Mental Health Counseling
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Pepperdine University, B.A. in English Writing & Rhetoric
Advanced Training
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Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR), The Center for Excellence in EMDR Therapy (EMDIRA-authorized)
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Gottman Method: Couples Therapy Levels 1 & 2
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Gottman Method: Treating Affairs & Trauma
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Gottman Method: Couples & Addiction Recovery
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Prepare/Enrich Facilitator
Advanced Training
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Perinatal Mood Disorders: Components of Care, Postpartum Support International (PSI)
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PSI's Perinatal Mental Health Advanced Psychotherapy Training
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Emotions-Focused Couples Therapy Fundamentals (ICEEFT) (ongoing)
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Northwestern Grief Series Roundtable
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Regional Victim Services Training 1-4
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Psychological First Aid
Associations
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National Certified Counselor (NCC), National Board for Certified Counselors
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American Counseling Association
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Postpartum Support International
