Maggie S.

Maggie S.

M.A., ALMFT, MFTC

Intentional Growth for Meaningful Living

Meet Maggie, a warm and thoughtful couples counselor, individual therapist, life coach, and family therapist. If you are feeling stuck in life or unproductive relationship patterns, she is here to help you get new insight, clarity about your goals, and forge your path forward with confidence.

Schedule with Maggie

Therapist Overview


Hello there, I’m Maggie.

I’m grateful you are here and interested in learning more about therapy, coaching, and what that might look like with me. I work with couples, parents, individuals, and families by helping them feel more balanced, as well as having closer relationships with those around them. My number one desire when working with you is to cultivate a space to explore what is happening in your life and for you to find meaningful changes for your growth journey.

Wherever you are in life — whether it’s feeling stuck, confused, in a rut, or maybe just wanting some change — I’m here to meet you where you are. No judgment. You are human, and it’s ok to ask for help! It’s what we were biologically designed to do for one another.

My passion for helping people through therapy and coaching developed while living cross-culturally. Living outside one’s home culture can be exciting! It can also be stressful. I observed myself and others dealing with that stress in different, and at times, unhelpful ways. I wanted to find out more and to help, so I obtained my master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy in 2018. This training and my work experience since then have allowed me to help clients find meaningful, life-giving resolutions to life’s stressors and challenges.

Some of my specializations are:

  • Cross-cultural and expat living
  • Relationships (premarital, couples, parent-child, breakups, divorce, co-parenting)
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Burnout
  • Life adjustments/transitions
  • Blended family living
  • Career decisions/transitions
  • Faith-inclusive therapy and life coaching, if requested.

Some of the main evidence-based models I practice in therapy are Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), The Gottman Method, Narrative Therapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Structural Family Therapy, and Collaborative Problem Solving.

Couples Counseling and Relationship Coaching

The growth process looks different for every couple. Sometimes, you might come into relationship counseling or coaching feeling vulnerable with your partner, and unsure if therapy or coaching will actually make a difference. It can feel risky (maybe even a bit scary) to take a step into the unknown with your partner. Sessions with me are a place where you don’t have to take that risk alone.

When working with couples in a therapy setting, I use Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) to help partners revitalize and strengthen their bond with one another. Using an EFT approach, I can support you and your partner in moving from conflict and disconnection to a deeper sense of closeness and belonging. We will work together to pinpoint patterns that no longer serve your relationship and identify new, meaningful resolutions, and ways of engaging with one another. I draw on techniques from this model when working with my coaching clients as well.

I can provide support with:

  • Premarital counseling
  • Communication
  • Relational conflict
  • Infidelity
  • Life transitions/adjustments
  • Discernment counseling
  • Developing deeper intimacy

Individual Therapy

For some people, even scheduling the first meeting with a therapist feels like a big risk. I see that, and I think it’s a big deal to want to gain resolution and healing in your life. It is a worthwhile endeavor to take care of yourself and to know yourself better.

My desire is for the therapeutic relationship to be transformative. During individual sessions with me, you will get to take time to look at your healing journey: where you have been, where you are now, and where you are going.

I am able to provide therapy services to clients located in the state of Illinois and Colorado. Through therapy, we can work to address mild mental health concerns and create a safe space for healing and emotional processing.

I use Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy to assist you in feeling secure within yourself and your relationships. I also use Narrative Therapy to empower you to go into the world living your most rewarding story.

I can provide support with:

  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Grief/Loss
  • Trauma
  • Body image
  • Breakup/Divorce processing & healing
  • Interpersonal conflict
  • Sensory sensitivities and attention difficulties
  • Developing social skills

Individual Coaching

If you are looking to make intentional growth toward your goals, a coaching relationship with me is a great place to start. In coaching, we will investigate what makes you flourish and what makes you feel empty or stuck. We can collaborate to design a plan that helps you set and achieve your goals.

I can provide support with:

  • Life adjustments and transitions
  • Career goals
  • Dating/Relationship growth & satisfaction
  • Breakup recovery
  • Developing community
  • Burnout

I hope that together we can create long-lasting change.

Working with Parents, Teens, and Families

As a parent, you might feel overwhelmed by the many demands of your family, and the responsibilities that go with caring for a child around the clock. You might even feel like you are out of ideas and aren’t sure of what to try next. I’m here to help you release some of that stress and find helpful ways to balance your family’s needs, along with your own. Let’s take time working together to help your family find creative solutions that foster connection!

I have experience working with children of all ages, but I specialize in working with adolescents (age 15 and up) and their parents/legal guardians. I use Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) as a means to help your family feel heard, understood, and to create a tangible path forward.

I also have experience working with parents and their adult children. As you grow older, your roles change. Sometimes it can be challenging to relate to one another in your new roles. Our sessions can be a great place to process these changes and develop new ways of communicating with one another that fits your family.

I can provide support with:

  • Helping adolescents adjust to different life stages
  • Making parenting decisions as a team and navigating different parenting styles
  • Communication with children
  • Finding support for children with disabilities and advocating for your child
  • Children with behavioral/emotional challenges


A little more about me:

I received my M.A. in Marriage and Family therapy from Wheaton College in Illinois. I am an associate licensed marriage and family therapist in Illinois and a marriage and family therapist candidate in Colorado. I am able to provide therapy services to Illinois-based and colorado-based residents and coaching services to clients located in the U.S. and internationally. In my clinical career, I have worked for a nonprofit community counseling center and an intensive in-home counseling organization. I also work for a graduate school in the Philippines offering individual, couples, and family therapy services.

I’m from Wisconsin, but I explored beyond my Midwest roots and lived in different parts of the world (briefly in Costa Rica and Nicaragua, not so briefly in Turkey). I am now living in the Philippines. Even so, I’m still a Wisconsin girl at heart, and I enjoy my cheese, brats, and Green Bay Packers. In my free time, I love listening to audiobooks while walking or running. I’m married to a wonderful husband, and we enjoy finding fun restaurants, reading together at coffee shops, and taking our dog, Momo, for walks and vacations. Momo is a well-traveled pug with a big personality.

Schedule with Maggie