Maria Patania

Maria Patania is an LCSW - a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in New Jersey with 28 years of experience. She works with people dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, grief, eating and self-esteem concerns. She also offers support around life purpose when clients are reassessing direction after a change.

Her approach is grounded in Client-Centered Therapy. Sessions focus on listening closely and helping people name what matters to them. Conversations tend to be practical - identifying patterns, testing small changes, and noticing what feels different over time.

Maria often helps people facing transitions such as divorce, caregiving strain, and identity shifts. She also supports concerns tied to aging, body image, seasonal mood change, and the emotional aftermath of traumatic brain injury.

Work in sessions can include talking through painful feelings like guilt, shame, or isolation, and looking at eating and food-related issues in everyday life. She pays attention to how control issues and perfectionism show up in daily routines and relationships.

Her long practice gives experience across a wide range of life stages. People come to explore options, try out different ways of coping, and decide next steps at a pace that fits them.

How Client-Centered Therapy adapts to online work

Client-Centered Therapy puts the client's experience at the center. The therapist listens closely, reflects what she hears, and follows the client's lead on topics and pace. This approach can help when someone feels unsure about direction, because sessions focus on clarifying what matters and what feels doable.

That same approach is useful for mood and eating concerns. The therapist helps people name feelings like emptiness, guilt, or anxiety and connects those feelings to everyday choices. For issues related to caregiver stress or aging, sessions can look at routines, supports, and small behavior changes that reduce pressure.

Finding the right fit is part of the work. Maria will collaborate with each person to decide how to proceed based on goals and preferences. Together they review what helps and adjust the way they work as needed.

The exact session formats for her practice are not specified here, so confirm current options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit therapy into life by saving travel time, offering shorter check-ins when schedules are tight, or avoiding video when bandwidth is limited. Licensed professionals often use these practical choices to keep sessions manageable alongside work, caregiving, or other daily demands.