Maria Staniloiu, MA Clinical Psychologist

I am an open, understanding, present person with a great desire to stimulate the healthy side of the clients I work with. I have a theoretical understanding of the therapeutic process as well as a practical and personal understanding resulting from my own therapy, from the client’s chair. I treat the therapeutic relationship with devotion and respect, with professionalism while keeping alive the human connection. Treating the symptom is something I have in mind, but I find the symptom oriented approach as limiting. In my approach, the symptom is just the outside manifestation of something that happens within the person’s emotional schema. That’s why I am curious to get to know the person behind the symptom. Support, unconditional acceptance and guidance are some of the key elements in the therapeutic relationship and process.

The therapeutic approach I use is called Emotion Focused Therapy – EFT (not to be confused with emotional freedom technique, which is not associated). EFT is a humanistic-experiential, integrative approach (with elements of person-centered therapy, gestalt therapy, existential therapy, current psychological theories related to emotion, cognition, attachment and psychodynamics), which has empirical / evidence-based support.

The principle behind this psychotherapeutic approach is that in order to change an emotion, it needs to be felt first. EFT also tells us that emotions are adaptive and can become maladaptive due to adverse life events. In the absence of good emotional regulation the quality of life may decrease. This is how we can explain the excruciating and intense emotional states of anxiety or depression, for example. If one is aware of their own emotions and is able to feel, regulate or transform them, the person may get a sense of personal competence while being able to function authentically and effectively in relation to oneself and others.

In the EFT therapeutic process, it is essential that the therapeutic relationship be empathetic, warm, but also provide guidance. Thus, the person is guided by the therapist in living, exploring, transforming, giving meaning and regulating emotions.

According to EFT theory there are 3 types of emotions: primary, secondary and instrumental.

Primary emotions appear spontaneously in response to environmental stimuli. They can be adaptive or maladaptive;
Secondary emotions mask primary emotions when they are too difficult to access (I express anger when I am actually sad);
Instrumental emotions are those emotions that help us to manipulate the external environment.

LGBTQIA+ affirmative, trauma-informed and inclusive therapist!