Maria Clara Salazar-Pretto, LCSW

Maria Clara Salazar-Pretto is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with 20 years of experience working with clients across the lifespan. She has provided clinical services in hospitals, health centers, and private agencies, bringing a blend of academic training and hands-on practice to each clinical setting. She earned a master’s degree from California State University, Fresno in 1993 after completing an undergraduate major in clinical psychology, and she applies that foundation to address a wide range of emotional and relational concerns.

Raised within both Colombian and U.S. cultures, she is fluent in Spanish and English and often draws on cultural insight to strengthen rapport and tailor interventions. Her therapeutic stance is client-centered and goal-oriented, grounded in validation, active listening, and reflective collaboration. She commonly integrates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to identify and shift unhelpful thinking patterns, Solution-Focused techniques to set practical goals, and systems-informed perspectives for family and relationship work.

Her areas of focus include stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, depression, grief, relationship and intimacy issues, parenting challenges, anger, self-esteem, career transitions, ADHD, and compassion fatigue, among others. Treatment emphasizes practical coping skills and strategies to help clients build more grounded, fulfilling daily lives. The LCSW credential denotes specialized clinical training in social work and psychotherapy and reflects her professional preparation to provide clinical care.