
Healing starts with being heard.
Expert counseling for growth and lasting change — serving Maryland, USA.
The Benefits
Safe & Supportive Environment
Experience a warm, non-judgmental space to explore emotions, heal past wounds, and build resilience.
Tailored Therapy for Your Needs
We integrate trauma-informed, relational, and experiential methods to support your healing in a way that fits your story.
Build Stronger Connections
Therapy helps you break old patterns, improve communication, and grow in your relationship with others—and yourself.
Our Therapeutic Approach
Healing happens when trust and connection lead the way.
At 3Elements, we combine relational, experiential, and trauma-informed therapy to help individuals, couples, and families navigate emotional challenges and create meaningful change.
Our compassionate approach empowers clients to build healthier patterns, stronger relationships, and greater self-understanding.
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Therapy for Children
Our philosophy emphasizes working with the entire family system, as we believe this provides the most effective support for children. When children are young, we prioritize family dynamics and focus on parent engagement and parent coaching in the therapeutic process. Depending on the specific situation, we often spend as much or more time working with the parents as we do with the child. This collaborative approach allows us to address the underlying dynamics that may be affecting the child’s well-being
We offer therapy for children experiencing emotional, behavioral, or developmental challenges, always grounded in the family system
Personalized Therapy for Every Journey
Therapy for Adults
Individual therapy to help you navigate anxiety, life transitions, and relationship challenges—while building clarity, resilience, and self-understanding.
Strengthening Families One Session at a Time
Family Therapy
Family therapy to improve communication, restore connection, and create emotional safety.
With expert guidance tailored to your family’s unique needs, we help you navigate conflict and strengthen bonds across generations.
Healing Together: The Power of Group Therapy
Group Therapy
Group therapy to connect, heal, and grow with others. Experience shared insight, support, and emotional growth in a safe, guided environment.
Guidance for a Stronger, Healthier Relationship
Couples Therapy
Couples therapy to improve communication, rebuild trust, and reconnect.
Whether you’re facing high conflict relationships or looking to grow together, we help couples strengthen their relationship with intention and care.
Our Expertise
Whether you're navigating a diagnosis or just feeling “off,” therapy can help you make sense of what you're experiencing.
At 3Elements Counseling, we support clients facing a wide range of emotional and psychological challenges.
You don’t need a label to seek help. If something feels heavy, therapy is a safe place to explore it with compassion and clarity.
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Healing from experiences of violence, abuse, accidents, or other deeply distressing events.
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Strengthening relationships, improving communication, and navigating parenting struggles.
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Coping with the emotional aftermath of losing a loved one due to natural causes, accidents, or unexpected circumstances.
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Adjusting to major life changes such as relocation, career shifts, parenthood, retirement, or medical diagnoses.
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Managing feelings of hopelessness, loss of motivation, irritability, and changes in sleep or appetite.
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Overcoming excessive worry, panic attacks, restlessness, and communication barriers in personal and professional life.
Meet the Therapists Who Are Here for You
Finding the right therapist can feel overwhelming. That’s why we want you to get a sense of who we are—not just our credentials, but how we show up for you. At 3Elements, each therapist offers warmth, deep listening, and a commitment to your growth.
Paula Catalan
LCPC Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor
TEP Trainer, Educator and Practitioner of Psychodrama
Jody Kanter
LGPC Licensed Graduate Professional Counselor
Alba Prados
LCPC Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor
Client Stories: Healing in Their Own Words
Therapy that Adapts to You
Online or In-Person
Get support where you feel most at ease—whether from home or in our Kensington office.
English or Spanish
Work with a bilingual therapist in the language that feels most natural to you.
Cash / Check / Credit Card
Simple and flexible payment options to keep therapy within reach.
FAQs
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Finding a good therapist is an important step in your healing journey. Like in any profession, there are highly skilled and ethical therapists, but there are also those who may not be the right fit for you. The best way to start is by seeking recommendations from someone who has experienced meaningful healing with a therapist. Firsthand referrals from friends, family, or trusted professionals can help you find someone with a proven track record of effectiveness and integrity.
Beyond recommendations, here are key factors to consider when choosing a therapist:
Integrity & Ethical Standards – A good therapist operates with transparency, professionalism, and strong ethical boundaries. They should uphold confidentiality, avoid conflicts of interest, and prioritize your well-being over their personal or financial gain.
Experience & Specialization – Look for someone with substantial experience in the field and expertise in working with concerns similar to yours. Therapists with diverse experience can tailor their interventions to your specific needs.
Knowledge of Different Modalities – Therapy is not one-size-fits-all. A skilled therapist should be well-versed in multiple therapeutic approaches (e.g., psychodynamic, CBT, attachment-based therapy, psychodrama) and able to adapt their method to suit your personality, history, and goals.
Clinical Insight & Effective Interventions – A strong therapist doesn’t just listen passively but knows how to make thoughtful, strategic interventions that challenge unhelpful patterns, expand self-awareness, and foster healing. They should be able to assess when to offer support, when to encourage action, and when to gently push for deeper reflection.
A Strong Therapeutic Connection – Research consistently shows that the quality of the relationship between therapist and client is one of the biggest predictors of success in therapy. You should feel safe, understood, and respected. If you don’t feel a connection after a few sessions, it’s okay to seek someone else.
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Therapy is an individualized process, tailored to each person’s unique needs, history, and goals. The length of therapy depends on several factors, including:
Your starting point – Your emotional and mental state when beginning therapy influences the pace of progress.
Your goals – Short-term therapy may be effective for those seeking support through a life transition, while deeper, long-standing challenges—such as childhood trauma, attachment wounds, or complex relational patterns—often require longer-term work.
Family conflict & relational work – When therapy involves family dynamics, addressing conflicts, or repairing relationships, additional time may be needed. Preparing each family member through individual sessions before bringing them together in a family setting allows for more productive conversations and reduces reactivity.
Your level of engagement – Progress depends on how actively you participate, both in and outside of therapy. Applying insights, practicing new behaviors, and integrating changes into daily life accelerate growth.
Logistical considerations – Coordinating sessions for multiple family members, scheduling conflicts, and ensuring each person has space to process their emotions can add to the timeline.
The therapeutic approach – Some structured methods, like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), may provide symptom relief in a few months, while depth-oriented therapies, such as attachment-based or psychodynamic therapy, often require more time to address underlying patterns.
For some, therapy is a short-term intervention (a few months) offering tools for immediate concerns. For others, it is a longer journey, fostering deep healing and transformation. Progress is not always linear, but with the right therapist and a strong commitment to the process, meaningful change is possible.
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Our practice is out-of-network, meaning we do not bill insurance directly. However, many insurance plans offer out-of-network benefits, which can reimburse a portion of therapy costs. Clients should check with their insurance provider to determine their specific coverage.
Key Insurance Terms to Understand:
Out-of-Network Benefits – Some insurance plans will reimburse therapy with providers outside their network, but coverage varies.
Deductible – This is the amount you must pay out of pocket before your insurance begins reimbursing you. For example, if your out-of-network deductible is $2,000, you must cover that amount in medical expenses (including therapy) before your insurance contributes.
Coinsurance – Once your deductible is met, your insurance may cover a percentage of the session cost, while you are responsible for the rest. For example, if your plan covers 60% after the deductible, you would pay the remaining 40% per session.
Superbill Submission – After each paid session, we provide a superbill, an itemized receipt containing all necessary details for insurance claims. Clients can submit this document to their insurance company for potential reimbursement.
How to Check Your Coverage:
Call your insurance provider and ask about out-of-network mental health benefits.
Inquire about your deductible and whether it applies to mental health services.
Ask about coinsurance—what percentage of the cost will be covered after the deductible is met.
Find out how to submit a superbill for reimbursement.
While using out-of-network benefits requires some extra steps, it allows you to choose a therapist based on fit and expertise rather than insurance network restrictions.
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Yes, therapy works—but its impact varies depending on the person, the challenges they face, and the therapeutic approach. Some experiences can be worked through and integrated, leading to a greater sense of well-being and improved relationships. Other challenges may not completely disappear, but therapy can help reduce distress, build resilience, and create meaningful change in how they are managed.
Growth & Integration – Some experiences can be processed in a way that allows for emotional relief, deeper self-understanding, and healthier relationships. This can lead to greater clarity, improved decision-making, and a stronger sense of self.
Symptom Relief & Coping – Some difficulties may persist to some degree, but therapy provides tools to manage them more effectively, lessen their impact, and cultivate a greater sense of control and balance.
A Safe Space for Change – Therapy offers a non-judgmental space for exploration, emotional expression, and skill-building. Even when challenges remain, how you experience and respond to them can shift significantly, leading to greater fulfillment and agency.
Part of the growth process in therapy is opening up to new perspectives. This expanded view of yourself, your relationships, and your life allows for deeper understanding, which ultimately leads to more intentional choices and emotional freedom. Therapy helps you gain a clearer, more compassionate perspective on your life and empowers you to live in alignment with your values.
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Yes, therapy is confidential, meaning that what you share in sessions is private and will not be disclosed without your consent. However, there are exceptions dictated by law where a therapist is required to break confidentiality, including:
Risk of Harm – If there is a credible threat of harm to yourself or others, the therapist is legally obligated to intervene to prevent harm.
Child or Elder Abuse – Therapists must report any suspected abuse or neglect of children, elderly individuals, or vulnerable adults.
Court Orders – If a court subpoenas records or requires testimony, a therapist may be compelled to release certain information.
Danger to the Community – If there is a threat to the safety of the community or a specific individual, a therapist may need to take action.
To ensure greater confidentiality, one step you can take is to opt out of using insurance for therapy. By not submitting superbills or claims through insurance, your therapy remains private and won’t be documented in insurance records, providing an extra layer of confidentiality.