Marina Rathjens, LCSW, C-DBT

Individual Therapist

Marina is a relational, trauma-informed therapist who works with adults, adolescents, and couples navigating life transitions, relationship challenges, and questions of identity. Her work is grounded in creating a safe, attuned space where clients feel seen and supported as they explore emotional patterns, strengthen self-trust, and move toward more meaningful connection. Whether adjusting to a new school, country, diagnosis, career path, or relationship, Marina helps clients slow down, reflect, and feel more grounded during periods of change.

Marina brings an integrative, evidence-based approach informed by psychodynamic therapy, trauma-informed care, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy. She is formally trained in Internal Family Systems (IFS Level 1) through the IFS Institute. She supports clients navigating transitions such as parenthood, career shifts, identity changes, and relational strain, as well as professionals in high-demand roles who are seeking greater clarity, balance, and healthier ways of relating. Marina continues to work with adolescents and young adults facing academic pressure and identity exploration, helping them build emotional awareness and resilience.

In her work with couples, Marina focuses on communication, attachment, and emotional safety. She helps partners slow down reactive cycles, understand one another’s inner experiences, and repair moments of disconnection with empathy and curiosity. Her approach emphasizes strengthening trust and fostering more secure, responsive relationships.

Born and trained in Brazil, Marina has lived in Colombia, England, and Germany before making the United States her home 16 years ago. Having navigated multiple cultures herself, she brings a nuanced understanding of belonging, identity shifts, and the emotional complexity of living between worlds. She is passionate about serving Houston’s Latino, immigrant, and expatriate communities and offers therapy in Portuguese, English, and Spanish. Marina also completed the GLOBE Program, an interprofessional behavioral health training initiative that prepares clinical social workers to deliver integrated mental health care in diverse communities.

Marina is a member of the American Group Psychotherapy Association (AGPA) and serves as Third Vice President of the Houston Group Psychotherapy Society (HGPS), where she also co-facilitates the IFS Special Interest Group. She is part of the Pathos IOP clinical team and facilitates the Pathos Aftercare Process Group.

Credentials

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)

Education

• Master of Social Work, University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work
• Diploma in Psychology, Pontificia Universidade Catolica (PUC-SP, Brazil)