Macarena Santelices , MD, LCPC, LPCC

Macarena Santelices, MD, LCPC, LPCC, is a licensed clinician in California and Maryland with 14 years of professional experience. MD indicates a medical degree, and LCPC and LPCC are clinical counseling licenses that reflect her training and regulatory standing in both states. She focuses on helping people manage stress and anxiety, navigate relationship and family conflicts, and build motivation, self-esteem, and confidence.

She approaches care from a strengths-based perspective, viewing each person as the expert of their own story and drawing on existing resources to address current challenges. Macarena meets clients where they are and collaborates with them to identify clear, attainable goals, offering steady support as they work toward those goals. She emphasizes practical steps and skill-building that fit into everyday life, helping clients make meaningful changes over time.

Macarena is upfront about the scope of her practice - she does not provide trauma therapy and recommends seeking a different therapist for trauma-focused work. Taking the first step to begin therapy can require courage, and she recognizes and honors that commitment when people reach out to begin their work.

Therapeutic Approaches and Online Care

Macarena Santelices uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to help people identify and shift unhelpful thoughts and behaviors. CBT is practical and skills-focused, often used for stress, anxiety, low mood, and challenges with motivation or self-esteem.

She also draws on Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) strategies to teach emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. DBT tools can be helpful for managing intense emotions, improving communication, and reducing impulsive reactions.

Finding the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. Macarena works collaboratively with clients to assess needs, goals, and preferences, and tailors techniques from these approaches to fit each person’s situation and pace.

Online sessions via video calls, phone, live chat, or text-based messaging provide flexible ways to engage in therapy without rearranging an entire day. These options can make it easier to maintain consistency, access care from home or work, and integrate therapeutic work into everyday life, while still working closely with a licensed professional to address personal goals.