Emily Schnitger, MS

Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist, LMFT 100110

[ she / her / hers ]

I approach this work from a place of curiosity and a desire to connect. It is a privilege to get to know the person sitting across from me - their strengths, hopes, and struggles - and to create space for their joy and pain.

When we are known by another person we are able to understand and see ourselves more clearly.

I help clients take a compassionate stance toward themselves and others as they recognize the ways that they have been conditioned to approach life from a place of judgment and criticism. 

I enjoy working with clients who…

  • are interested in doing deep, reflective work in order to become more authentic, self-aware, and integrated

  • want to discover how their historical experiences shaped their ways of relating to self + others and find healing from old wounds

  • want to understand themselves better and the patterns + dynamics that continue to appear in their relationships while also feeling empowered to consciously cultivate new ways of relating

My approach…

I work from an attachment-oriented and psychodynamic lens. That means that I take into consideration the historical contexts in which identity and relational development takes places. More simply put, I want to hear about your early relationships and the implicit and explicit messages you received about yourself and your connection with others. I also work from a relational framework, which means that I am interested in hearing about your experience of our interactions with each other and will sometimes share my experience of our interactions with you. Understanding the interpersonal process between us can give us insights into your ways of relating with other people in your life.

I earned my M.S. in Marriage and Family Therapy from Fuller Graduate School of Psychology. I have training in Contemporary Relational Psychoanalysis and Perinatal Mood & Anxiety Disorders. I also have trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and am a certified Prepare/Enrich facilitator. I use these models to help couples repair disconnection in their relationships and understand the patterns that keep them stuck.

My commitment…

Psychotherapy has evolved in a predominantly patriarchal, eurocentric context that has historically not taken into account the experiences of people and groups that fall outside the dominant norm. I am committed to learning from modalities and perspectives of historically marginalized and disregarded voices that have contributed to the theory and practice of psychotherapy.

On a more personal note…

I’m a retired math professor. I still think math is cute and fun but teaching was not as fulfilling as connecting with people one-on-one and getting to hear about the most important parts of their lives.

I deeply appreciate symmetry and pattern in design. But I am also learning to love the way that spontaneity and irregularity in nature has a regulating effect on my body, mind, heart, and spirit.

I enjoy the art of lettering and penmanship and I love a good rollerball pen. I find both the creative flow of calligraphy and the expressive process of scribbling away in a journal to be therapeutic.

I am a lifetime resident of Southern California. I currently live in the Pasadena area with my spouse and kids.