Maria Smartt, LMSW, LISW

Maria Smartt is an independently licensed social worker practicing in Michigan and Ohio. She holds a Licensed Master Social Worker credential and a Licensed Independent Social Worker credential and brings 11 years of professional experience to her practice. Maria focuses on practical help for common life stresses and emotional struggles. She helps people manage stress and anxiety with straightforward strategies. She also supports those coping with trauma and abuse, depression, low self-esteem, and challenges around motivation. Maria addresses relationship and family concerns and works with people facing parenting strains, adoption and foster care questions, and issues related to veteran and armed forces life. Her approach is collaborative and down-to-earth. Conversations are shaped to fit each person's situation, and treatment plans are adjusted as goals evolve. Sessions focus on skills you can try between meetings and on making steady, manageable progress. Maria uses client-centered methods to keep the work grounded in each person's values and choices. She also draws on cognitive behavioral techniques to help people notice and change unhelpful thinking and behavior patterns. Motivational interviewing is used when someone needs support finding the drive to make important changes. She aims to treat everyone with respect and compassion while tailoring the process to individual needs. Taking the first step can feel hard, and Maria offers steady guidance as people work toward a more fulfilling life.

How Maria’s Approaches Work Online

Client-Centered Therapy focuses on the person’s own goals and choices. The therapist listens without judgment and helps people clarify what matters most and how they want to move forward. This approach helps when someone needs support finding direction or building confidence.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts, feelings, and actions interact. Maria can help people spot unhelpful thinking patterns and try new behaviors that reduce anxiety or lift mood. CBT is often used for stress, anxiety, depression, and problems with motivation.

Motivational Interviewing is a short-term, goal-focused style that helps people find their own reasons for change. It is useful when someone feels stuck or wants to increase their drive to make changes in areas like addiction, parenting, or self-care.

Choosing the right approach is a team effort. Maria works with each person to identify goals and select methods that fit their needs, values, and pace. The plan can be adjusted as progress or priorities change.

Confirm which session formats are currently offered before booking, since formats are not listed here. Online therapy can make it easier to fit sessions into a busy life, reduce travel time, and allow more flexible scheduling for short check-ins or longer weekly sessions. These practical benefits help therapy fit around work, family, and daily routines.