Mari Shelton, MPH

Resident Therapist
She/Her
I see clients located in: DC
I am supervised by: Dr. Laura Golojuch, LMFT

Common areas in which I work with clients:

  • Anxiety

  • Chronic Illness / Pain

  • Couples

  • Relationship Challenges

  • Trauma / PTSD

How therapy with me can help you:

In my therapeutic work with clients, I strive to honor all the pieces that make them who they are and see them as the expert of their lived experiences. I utilize an eclectic and integrative approach - pulling from attachment, emotionally-focused, person-centered, and systemic therapies - in order to help clients understand their thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and cycles that come up in current relationships (whether that relationship be with friends, family, partners, or themselves). I guide my clients into exploring how their earliest experiences, salient identities, intergenerational trauma, cultural contexts, and places in larger societal systems all intersect. My therapeutic approach focuses on meeting clients where they are at and building deep trust and collaboration that fosters a safe, zero judgment space. I work from the belief that deep personal growth happens when clients allow themselves to unravel, embrace “the messy”, and face what feels scary and uncomfortable. Through this process, I work with my clients to deconstruct old patterns and thoughts that no longer serve them, and empower them towards self-discovery, inner emotional reconnection, and radical authenticity.

I am social justice-oriented, LGBTQIA+ allied, and body and sex positive. My particular interests are working with individuals and couples, especially as related to anxiety, multicultural and racial issues, chronic illnesses/conditions, relationship conflict, and intergenerational trauma.

About me:

I am a Persian-American therapist and received my M.A. in Couples, Marriage, and Family Therapy at the University of Colorado. I earned my Master of Public Health and Bachelor’s of Science in Human Nutrition and Exercise Science, both from Virginia Tech. Before becoming a therapist, I worked on health policy research for NIH and FEMA, as well as in medical administration for both pediatric care and outpatient medication-assisted treatment. These experiences have given me a unique and holistic perspective that I bring into my therapeutic work.

In my spare time, I enjoy traveling, painting, cooking, stand-up comedy, EDM/trance concerts and festivals, and spending time with my family, friends, and furbabies, Meeko and Raja.