- Emotionally-Focused Therapy
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
- Attachment-based work
About Marilyn
Marilyn Traynor is an Illinois Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with 40 years of clinical experience. She focuses on helping adults manage depression, anxiety, grief, addictions, and major life changes. Her practice also addresses stress, self-esteem, career strain, and challenges tied to chronic illness and caregiving.
She works with people who are navigating relationship tensions, intimacy-related concerns, and communication problems. Marilyn uses emotion-focused ways of working to help people name and respond to difficult feelings. She also draws on cognitive behavioral techniques and client-centered listening to clarify patterns that keep problems recurring.
Many clients come for help with aging and geriatric issues, caregiver stress, or the emotional impact of chronic pain and illness. Marilyn talks through practical coping skills as well as long-standing attachment wounds that can affect current relationships. Her experience includes addressing substance use, compassion fatigue, and boundary struggles.
Her sessions aim to make emotional patterns easier to see and change. She uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) ideas to help people act on values when emotions run high. Attachment-based perspectives inform work around abandonment, commitment issues, and blended family stress.
Marilyn’s approach blends gentle exploration with skill building. She helps clients develop concrete tools for day-to-day problems while also attending to deeper feelings that fuel them. People who want steady, experienced guidance for complex emotional and life transitions often choose to work with her.
How her approaches translate to online work
Marilyn uses Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT) to help people notice and name difficult feelings and attachment patterns that shape relationships and everyday reactions. EFT is focused on emotions and the interactions those emotions create in close connections. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is also part of her work; ACT helps people clarify values and take action even when strong emotions or difficult thoughts are present. Attachment-Based Therapy informs how she looks at long-term relational patterns and past losses that keep reappearing in current life.Choosing an approach is a collaborative process. Marilyn will discuss which methods fit a person’s goals and preferences, and she adjusts the way she uses these approaches as therapy progresses. Clients and therapist decide together what feels most useful week to week.
Please confirm the exact session formats before booking, as current options are not specified here. Online arrangements can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy day, reduce travel, allow shorter check-ins when needed, or avoid being on camera when that helps. Licensed professionals can guide whether a given format suits the presenting issue and practical needs.
Areas of expertise
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
40+ years
Listed in
Illinois
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of concerns does she address?
She works with depression, anxiety, grief, stress, addiction, relationship and intimacy issues, parenting and caregiver stress, chronic illness, and related concerns.
What is her therapeutic style?
Her approach emphasizes Emotionally-Focused Therapy alongside client-centered listening and practical CBT strategies to help people name feelings and change unhelpful patterns.
How much clinical experience does she have?
She brings 40 years of clinical experience practicing in Illinois.
What credentials and location apply?
She is an Illinois Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) based in Illinois.
Which languages and international work are supported?
Sessions are offered in English and she accepts international clients.
What session formats are offered?
Please confirm current session options before booking to know whether sessions are virtual, in-person, or by phone.
How are costs handled?
Cost varies with location and sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with her?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.
Profile details come from information the therapist supplied to BetterHelp. Credential and registration rules differ between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.