Mary Franco , LMFT

Mary Franco is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) with 14 years of clinical experience in California. She focuses on stress, anxiety, relationships, parenting, self-esteem, and coping with life changes. She also supports issues around communication, family conflict, forgiveness, life purpose, midlife transitions, self-love, women's issues, and young adult concerns.

Her sessions are conversational and practical. She listens to each person's story and partners with them to set clear, realistic goals. Mary uses a strengths-based, adaptable style and adjusts techniques to fit what each person needs in the moment.

Her background includes private practice, community organizations, and work in public schools across several grade levels. Before earning her LMFT, she provided counseling through nonprofit programs and offered in-home behavioral support for children and families. This variety shaped a flexible approach to different life stages and concerns.

Mary believes therapy can be short or longer-term depending on the person's goals. She emphasizes collaboration and meeting people where they are. Sessions aim to build coping skills, clearer communication, and practical steps toward change.

People who choose to work with her can expect straightforward guidance, gentle challenge when useful, and attention to real-life routines and relationships. She welcomes conversations about next steps and how therapy might fit into a person's daily life.

How her approaches translate to online therapy

Mary uses evidence-based therapeutic techniques delivered in a straightforward way. One common approach she draws on focuses on building coping skills and practical behavioral strategies to reduce anxiety and manage stress. These methods teach small, doable changes that people can use between sessions to feel steadier. Another typical approach emphasizes communication and relationship skills work; it helps people practice clearer requests, set boundaries, and repair conflicts in everyday interactions.

Choosing the right approach is a collaborative process. Mary works with each person to decide which techniques match their goals and comfort level, and she adjusts the plan as therapy progresses. That way clients help steer what feels most useful for their situation.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging to make therapy flexible. Video calls support face-to-face conversation and exercises, phone sessions can be easier when bandwidth is low, live chat allows a quicker check-in on busy days, and text messaging supports brief or ongoing reflections between appointments. These options help fit therapy into work breaks, caregiving schedules, or everyday routines.