We had the good fortune of connecting with Mary Kay Cocharo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mary Kay, we’d love to hear more about your end-goal, professionally.
I have been helping couples in relationship therapy for the past 34 years. I have taught, supervised, and mentored many professionals in the field of psychotherapy. I currently work with couples week to week, in longer Private Intensives, Workshops, and Weekend Couples Retreats.
My vision is to offer Couples Retreats around the world at various resort locations.
I am also passionate about teaching classes of therapists how to work with couples using the Encounter-centered Couples Therapy model.
By the end of my career, I want to see many more well-trained couples therapists carrying forth this legacy.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I have had a very active, successful career, working with people in their relationships. This has led to work with heterosexual and same-sex couples at any stage of their relationship, from dating to divorce, and beyond. I’ve also worked with adult siblings, adult children and their parents, and co-workers struggling to improve their relational dynamics. I have trained and supervised many clinicians in the field of psychotherapy. I have taught Couples Therapy at various graduate schools. I believe that teaching and mentoring have kept me “on my toes” and learning throughout the years. I am most excited to specialize in seeing couples. Many Marriage Therapists are generalists, but I have a deeply trained and practiced specialty in this part of the therapy field. This has required much advanced training and it hasn’t always been easy.
I always encourage potential clients to go to therapists who have advanced certifications in the field. Graduate school is just not enough! I’ve learned a lot of lessons along the way, but the biggest one is the imperative to act ethically at all times with the clients’ needs taking precedence. The other important thing is to pursue continuing education as the field grows and develops. Because I work with human beings, there is always some new discovery or theory to help us get through our relationships and our lives. The advent of the functional MRI has given us the field of neuroscience and the opportunity to see what’s actually going on when two people interact. Additionally, the internet has changed the way we connect and market our services. This has also been a big learning curve!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love when people come to visit. It gives me the chance to show off our hometown and get out a bit. I usually take friends to many of our outstanding museums: The Getty Museum, The Getty Villa, The Huntington, LA County Museum of Art, and the Broad. If they have children, the Cayton Children’s Museum in Santa Monica and the Long Beach Aquarium are always a hit. I usually take people to the pier in Santa Monica, having been a resident there for over 25 years. We also go up the coast to Malibu. I especially like getting out into nature for a hike. There are many good trails on the westside–Mandeville Canyon, Temescal Canyon, and really just anywhere in the Santa Monica Mountains. For shopping, we make a stop at Eataly in the Century City Mall and on to Beverly Hills. I enjoy eating downtown at Bestia, Red Bird, and Bar Ama. With enough notice I like to get tickets to music events at the Hollywood Bowl or Disney Center. Plays are enjoyable at the Ahmonson or in Westwood at the Geffen. There truly are so many fun things to do in LA!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Harville Hendrix, Ph.D., wrote Getting the Love you Want. This best-selling book lays out the theory and practice of Imago Relationship Therapy. I got certified in this model over 25 years ago and it changed my work and my life. Later, much of my training was with International Master Relationship Builder, Hedy Schleifer. Hedy is the founder of Encounter-centered Couples Therapy, an outgrowth of Imago. Both of these models and their creators have been instrumental in my lifelong work as a couples therapist and coach. Additionally, I have learned and grown from each and every couple that has walked through the door, (and graced my Zoom screen), over the years. I am indebted to their courage and vulnerability on their relational journeys.

Website: www.mkcocharo.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marycocharo/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-kay-cocharo-7952144/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mkcocharo

Facebook: https://facebook.com/MaryKayMFT

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/mary-kay-cocharo-lmft-los-angeles?osq=Mary+Kay+Cocharo+MFT

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/mkcocharo/

Other: Alignable: https://www.alignable.com/los-angeles-ca/mary-kay-cocharo-lmft

Image Credits
Mary Kay Cocharo Kendra Delahkooke

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