Maria Avila, LCSW

Hola! I’m Maria Avila, a first-generation Mexican-American therapist and the founder of Raíces Trauma Therapy. I specialize in working with:

• Survivors of childhood sexual abuse
• Adult daughters of emotionally unavailable or emotionally immature parents
• First-generation Latinas navigating cultural identity, intergenerational trauma, and people-pleasing
• Clients healing from religious trauma and shame-based conditioning

If you’ve been carrying pain from your past—whether it’s from sexual trauma, emotional neglect, or constantly being the one who holds it all together—you don’t have to keep carrying it alone. In our work together, we focus on healing the root, not just managing symptoms like anxiety, shame, depression, disconnection, or low self-worth.

I use a blend of Internal Family Systems (IFS), Somatic Healing, EMDR, and talk therapy to help you process deep emotional pain, reconnect with your body, and unlearn survival strategies that no longer serve you. These approaches support you in slowing down, tuning in, and finding compassion for every part of you—including the ones that are still hurting.

Many of my clients grew up with high expectations, low emotional support, and lots of unspoken rules around guilt, loyalty, and staying small. Therapy is where we begin to untangle all of that. Together, we’ll explore how cultural and family dynamics shaped your beliefs about yourself—and we’ll work on shifting those beliefs so you can step into your full, authentic self.

My clients are thoughtful, self-aware women who are ready to do deep healing work. You may be tired of always fixing, performing, and giving while feeling unseen yourself. If you’re ready to start choosing yourself—your healing, your voice, your worth—I’m here to walk with you every step of the way.