Maggie Sennish Psychotherapy

I offer psychotherapy and psycho-educational consultation to adults, couples, adolescents, children, and institutions in one-to-one and group settings.  My approach is based on a psychodynamic model that recognizes the power of an authentic and compassionate therapeutic relationship, intended to foster a deeper understanding of oneself, one’s history, and conditions, and to cultivate greater personal agency. In my work, I include meditation and mindfulness practices, common sense behavioral strategies, family systems strategies, community referrals, play therapy, writing, and eco-psychology (connecting psychotherapy and time in nature and earth stewardship). I seek consultation and collaboration with a wide network of mental health experts in the Los Angeles area, including other highly trained psychotherapists, psychiatrists, school leaders, educational therapists, and neuropsychologists. I am experienced in arranging and leading treatment teams, as well as making school and residential visits as needed.

Individual and group clients include:

Children experiencing stress due to losses, trauma, social challenges, learning issues, or developmental delays.  A safe environment in which children can express feelings and thoughts openly through play and experience increases a sense of belonging and can allow for growth in both the home and social learning environments. Play therapy, art activities, school consultation, family therapy, and social support groups provide therapeutic support to children ages 8 to 12.   

Adolescents and Young Adults – For the past ten years I have developed a variety of mental health services for teens, young adults, and parents coping with diverse challenges. Services include psychodynamic therapy for adolescents who are beginning the work of finding purpose and meaning and a sense of an autonomous self in the world.  For these older teenagers, particularly those with a history of trauma or learning disabilities, the launching phase can prove particularly difficult.  Individual and group work focuses on developing emotional awareness, coping skills, clear communication, self-responsibility, and the confidence and competence necessary for the successful transition from home into adulthood.

Adult Clients – I help individual adults and families seeking support around trauma and grief, a greater connection in relationships, and finding satisfaction in daily life. My goal is to develop a greater depth of emotional experience and purpose. Through compassionate therapeutic connection and understanding, a new paradigm for living a fuller life can emerge.

I also offer professional consultations to MFT and LCSW interns and licensed professionals.

FEES**

• Individual/Family/Couples 55  minute session:  $240
• Groups: $75 per 60-minute meeting, initial intake  $150.
• School visits and consultations are billed at $150 per hour.
• Intern and professional consultation fees are set on a case-by-case basis.
• Fees for psycho-educational workshops, services, and speaking engagements for schools and organizations are negotiated according to the service or package provided.
• Payment:   I accept payment each visit by check or through Zelle or credit card on file charged at the end of each session.
• At the end of each month, you will receive a superbill for your records or insurance billing purposes.
• I accept Aetna and Optum insurance via the Alma platform.

**I offer a sliding scale to individuals and families who are experiencing hardship meeting basic monthly expenses.

GirlsEmpowered™ Program

I offer GirlsEmpowered™ groups in my office and in schools, colleges, and programs serving girls and young women. 

Informed by twenty years of experience facilitating girls’ and women’s growth as a therapist and educator,  GirlsEmpowered™ is a carefully designed program that fosters the development of life long interpersonal self-awareness and understanding. Together, girls explore self-care and assertive communication, while developing a sense of agency and purpose. Groups are comprised of girls at the same developmental juncture facing similar challenges. For schools and organizations, a menu of workshops is available to choose from and can be shaped to fit your students’ needs and program goals.

MidlifeRising Groups

Midlife and beyond mark a time of transition and deep change in women’s lives.   For the first time in decades, women often have the conditions to look inward at where they have been and to discover a way to better take care of their own needs moving forward.  This retrospection can be both scary, and ultimately, freeing. But as the past is reckoned with, a sense of peace may slowly rise. Issues such as the end of fertility, parenting teenagers and young adults, facing life without a partner or children, caretaking elders, and experiencing grief and loss can be overwhelming when faced alone. In these groups, we can develop a practice of bringing caring attention to past and present needs that can surface with intensity. As unaddressed wounds and aspirations are discovered within the clarity of therapeutic work, it is possible to create a path of meaning and a deeper connection to the precious life that remains.

Psychoeducational Workshop Options

School workshops for regular and special education programs include a wide range of topics and flexible scheduling options that can be shaped to meet the needs of your students and program goals. I am also available as a psycho-educational consultant providing parent education, small group student conflict resolution, after school social skill-building workshops, and staff development.  Some current options include:

• Journaling for Life  Current research supports that creating a written narrative of our experience has a healing effect on our capacity to integrate, grow, and be psychologically resilient. Therapeutic writing workshops provide a fun and enlivening way to create this self-supportive practice. Carefully selected prompts are used to initiate timed writings and the material of each member is reviewed in a way that sheds light and understanding on one’s life path.
• Fighting Fair  This workshop focuses on assertive communication skills and handling conflict by forming a “sister circle” of authentic supportive relationships to find the power in attuning to others, and identifying safe places and people to ask for help.
• Eco-Psychology Workshops Girls explore ways of using nature and their innate connection to the earth to respect and embrace the wisdom and rhythms of their bodies. We work on identifying destructive messages of the media and culture and on finding self-honoring alternatives through popular women rappers, writers, performers, and leaders.  Meditation, hiking, gardening, and learning about ways to be earth stewards will be part of the curriculum as appropriate.

Past workshops I have presented at area public and private schools and organizations include:

• Conflict resolution skill building sessions to middle and high school girls
• Parent and teen workshops on sexual consent
• Sexual harassment prevention in the workplace and among student populations
• Teen depression/anxiety awareness and intervention workshops for parents
• Staff development workshops for integrating children with sensory integration and autism spectrum challenges
• Staff development on integrating mindfulness meditation in the classroom

Maggie Sennish, MFT is a group leader with twenty-five years experience as a Los Angeles educator and child and adolescent psychotherapist in schools, corporate and public organizations, agencies and private practice settings. 
Creating resilience, understanding, and vitality is the passionate cornerstone of my work with children, teens, and adults!

“Maggie is a dedicated and compassionate soul and a consummate professional. She cares deeply about her clients and is both patient and persistent in working towards their well being.” NL

“With Maggie’s tender guidance and knowledgeable, patient and careful work, my niece is today successfully navigating life through high school, despite the most challenging of circumstances. We all love and respect Maggie’s expertise, commitment, and heart. She has earned our family’s gratitude and highest recommendation.”  SW

“Maggie has earned the utmost respect from her colleagues as well as her clients. She is an exceptionally gifted therapist who will provide both tenderness and sound guidance to anyone who is lucky enough to find her.” AC 

“Maggie is a gifted and compassionate therapist who honors each person’s unique life journey. She lights the path with the depth of her intellect, wisdom, and experience. With warmth, kindness, and strength she has generously guided my family. I never feel alone knowing that Maggie is our ally.” TB

“Maggie came highly recommended to me when I was seeking assistance for anxiety I was experiencing around some issues that my tween daughter was having.  Maggie was so empathetic and compassionate towards me and really helped me to gain perspective through a direct but gentle lens. I felt like she really understood me and what I was going through. I’ve continued to seek her services and am continually impressed with her astute insights and practical feedback.  I’m so grateful for all the help she has given me.” KH

If you are interested in psychotherapy services, please contact me! I am interested in working together on your growth and aspirations. If you are an educator, administrator, or mental health professional interested in any of my programs and/or workshops, please contact me to develop a package shaped to meet the needs of your students and program goals.

Comfortable, light, and airy space with distanced seating

Tel: 310/446-5724  |  Email: maggiesennishmft@gmail.com

OFFICE LOCATION:  1334 Westwood Blvd, Suite 7, Los Angeles, CA 90024

The office is centrally located south of Westwood Village, minutes from the 405 Wilshire exit at Persian Square. In the interest of COVID safety, the suite used by me and my patients only, with its own entrance, indoor and outdoor waiting areas, and big windows and doors left open to the outside during sessions . Fans are run during and between sessions, and office surfaces carefully cleaned. MASKS are required.

PARKING is available for two hours in the neighborhood or at meters on Westwood and Rochester Boulevards