Often it’s the deepest pain which empowers you to grow into your highest self.

- Anonymous


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Jeannine Curley, LMFT

My name is Mary Jeannine Curley and I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT#53773) with a private practice in San Rafael, California, in Marin County. My practice specializes in therapy for teens, young adults, and families.

I graduated from Dominican University of California’s Counseling Psychology Master’s program and prior to that, I had earned a Bachelor’s in both Psychology and Humanities at York University.

For over 15 years, I have worked with Marin County teens and their families. I provided therapy to students at Phoenix Academy, an alternative education program, and family therapy services for the Marin County Juvenile Probation Department. I was one of four primary mental health therapists in the Juvenile Drug Court program for five years and a youth advocate for Marin County’s Public Defender’s Office for a year. I regularly work with at-risk youth through Probation and my own non-profit program, Opening the World.

I am trained in two evidence-based models designed to work with and address substance issues. One model, Motivational Enhancement Therapy/Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (MET/CBT), focuses on brief individual therapy. The other model, Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT), focuses on working with the entire family system. I am also trained in Somatic Therapy, Suicide & Crisis Prevention, Trauma-Informed Counseling, and Grief Counseling.

 
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Opening the World

Before pursuing this path, my dream was to take young adults struggling with adversity on volunteer-educational trips. Growing up, I faced my own challenges. Thankfully, I had a driving need to travel, and this decision shaped and altered my life choices forever. Since then, my mission has been to journey, both literally and figuratively, with others who have had similar life experiences and witness them embrace, explore, and experience the world.

In 2012, I founded Opening the World (OTW). OTW is a Marin-based, grassroots program designed to empower and expose young adults at risk (18-25 years) to a world beyond their own through volunteer, educational and cultural experiences within their communities and abroad. In 2014, I was fortunate to be one of 50 people worldwide to receive the Unsung Heroes of Compassion award and blessing from His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, for my work with OTW.

My Approach

 

I have experience with a variety of therapeutic approaches and will be guided by your needs; be it a directive or more non-directive approach. My areas of specialization include working with youth at risk, families, young adults, substance abuse issues, and trauma.

I believe it is most effective to work therapeutically with the entire family if at all possible. Rather than seek who is right or wrong, it is best to become curious and explore familial patterns that are causing the client(s) discomfort and to identify new patterns and boundaries, which will inspire a trajectory of healing. This overall process can be a very rewarding, enlightening, and transformative experience.

Questions about getting started?