- 20 years experience
- Bilingual English Spanish
- Client-centered care
About Mary
Mary McLaggan is a Licensed Professional Counselor who brings 20 years of experience to conversations about stress and anxiety. She speaks English and Spanish and focuses on helping people who are feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or uncertain about their next step. Mary emphasizes respect, sensitivity, and compassion in every session.
She helps people with common concerns like ADHD, depression, sleep problems, and coping with life changes. Relationship and intimacy questions, grief, and career stress are also areas she addresses. Mary works with issues tied to identity and sexuality, including LGBT concerns, and supports people facing burnout or compassion fatigue.
Her approach adapts to each person. Sessions are client-centered and use practical tools from cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy when helpful. Attachment-based ideas and existential questions about meaning may appear in conversation depending on the person's needs.
Mary prefers to tailor dialogue and treatment plans to what the client says is working. That can mean practicing a new coping skill, trying a different way to think about a worry, or focusing on connection and values. She frames therapy as a collaborative process where goals are set together.
Taking the first step can feel hard. Mary aims to make that step manageable by offering clear, straightforward guidance and steady support as people work toward more satisfying day-to-day life.
She helps people with common concerns like ADHD, depression, sleep problems, and coping with life changes. Relationship and intimacy questions, grief, and career stress are also areas she addresses. Mary works with issues tied to identity and sexuality, including LGBT concerns, and supports people facing burnout or compassion fatigue.
Her approach adapts to each person. Sessions are client-centered and use practical tools from cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy when helpful. Attachment-based ideas and existential questions about meaning may appear in conversation depending on the person's needs.
Mary prefers to tailor dialogue and treatment plans to what the client says is working. That can mean practicing a new coping skill, trying a different way to think about a worry, or focusing on connection and values. She frames therapy as a collaborative process where goals are set together.
Taking the first step can feel hard. Mary aims to make that step manageable by offering clear, straightforward guidance and steady support as people work toward more satisfying day-to-day life.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
LGBTRelationship issuesFamily conflictsTrauma and abuseGriefIntimacy-related issuesSleeping disordersParenting issuesAnger managementCareer difficultiesBipolar disorderCompassion fatigue
Additional focus areas
AbandonmentAdoption and foster careAging and geriatric issuesAntisocial personalityAttachment issuesAutism and Asperger SyndromeAvoidant personalityBDSM, kink, and alternative sex cultureBlended family issuesBody imageCaregiver issues and stressCo-morbidityCodependencyCommitment issuesCommunication problemsControl issuesCoping with natural or human-caused disasterDependent personalityDivorce and separationDomestic violenceEmptinessFamily of origin issuesFamily problemsForgivenessGuilt and shameHoardingImmigration issuesImpulsivityInfidelityIsolation / lonelinessJealousyLife purposeMidlife crisisMood disordersNarcissismObsessions, compulsions, and OCDPanic disorder and panic attacksParanoiaPersonality disordersPhobiasPolyamory / non-monogamous relationshipsPostpartum depressionPost-traumatic stressPregnancy and childbirthProcess addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)Self-harmSelf-loveSex addictionSexualitySocial anxiety and phobiaWomen's issuesWorkplace issuesYoung adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
Attachment-Based TherapyClient-Centered TherapyCognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)Existential TherapyMindfulness TherapyMotivational InterviewingNarrative TherapyPsychodynamic TherapySolution-Focused TherapyTrauma-Focused Therapy
Experience
20+ years
Credentials
Texas, Iowa
Languages
English, Spanish
How therapeutic approaches work in online care
Mary blends client-centered work with cognitive behavioral therapy and attachment-based ideas. Client-centered therapy focuses on listening closely and following the client's lead to set goals and pace. Cognitive behavioral therapy offers concrete steps to notice patterns, test thoughts, and try new behaviors to reduce anxiety or lift mood. Attachment-based approaches look at how past relationships influence current feelings and help people build more secure ways of relating.Finding the right approach is part of the process. Mary will talk with each person about their goals and preferences and then recommend options. This is a collaborative effort where strategies are adapted over time based on what helps most.
Session formats are not specified in the biography, so confirm current options before booking. Many people appreciate online work because it can fit into a busy day, reduce travel, and allow for shorter check-ins when schedules are tight. Others prefer longer sessions for deeper issues like grief or trauma. Discussing practical needs and daily routines helps choose a session rhythm that fits everyday life.
Frequently asked questions
What concerns does Mary commonly address?
She works with stress and anxiety along with depression, ADHD, sleep problems, grief, relationship and intimacy issues, career strain, and compassion fatigue.
How would you describe her therapeutic style?
Mary uses a client-centered approach that adapts to each person and mixes practical tools from cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy as needed.
How much clinical experience does she have?
She has 20 years of professional experience in counseling and has supported people through a wide range of life changes and mental health concerns.
What credentials and location are listed?
She holds LPC and LMHC credentials and is based in Iowa.
Which languages are supported for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English and Spanish.
Can international clients work with her?
International clients are not currently accepted.
How does billing and cost work?
Cost varies by location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
What are the steps to begin therapy?
Use the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule according to the therapist's availability.