Hi there. I’m Margaret Sue Perlstein, MFT. Since 1991, I’ve been helping clients successfully navigate the ups and downs of life, family, and relationships. With an emphasis on communication and collaboration, I specialize in working with teens, parents, couples, and individual adult counseling, all in a safe and non-judgmental environment.

After graduating from Indiana University with a B.A. in English and Telecommunications, I moved on to get my M.A. in Psychology from Dominican College. Following graduation, I interned at several local non-profits, including the Suicide Prevention Hotline and Braun Day Treatment Center, Marin Treatment Center, Community Institute for Psychotherapy.

During that time, I developed an affinity for working with teens and families as well as people experiencing grief or difficulty in making life transitions. I found that my collaborative and communicative approach worked well with the intense feelings of people in those groups. This resulted in many people getting a better understanding of their feelings while they worked to overcome difficult circumstances and forge a path towards a stronger, truer sense of self.

By creating a safe and supportive environment in my private practice in Corte Madera, I guide clients on a journey of self-exploration through compassion, communication, and trust. I don’t necessarily subscribe to one particular modality over another; in my book, there are many effective paths to success based on each client’s personal journey. My approach pulls from cognitive behavioral, neuroscience, mindfulness, Rogerian, and psychodynamic family therapy models, among others, depending on what works best for each client. Most importantly, I bring pragmatism to each session, as well as a goal to understand each client as deeply as possible so that I can best help them.

In addition to the work I do with teens and their families, I work with adults and couples. Together, we strive to understand and articulate what issues are concerning them and develop new solutions, perceptions, and strategies to overcome the stuck and uncomfortable patterns that often bring them through my door.