Maria Cascarino, BACP

Maria Cascarino is a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist with three years' practical experience. She works with people facing stress, anxiety, depression, anger and concerns about self-esteem and career. Maria aims to make starting therapy straightforward and approachable for anyone feeling unsure about the first step.

She creates a non-judgemental space where people can talk about the thoughts and behaviours that get in the way of daily life. Sessions are tailored to each person, with clear, practical steps to try between meetings. Maria helps people build skills to manage panic attacks, reduce social anxiety, and address body image worries.

Her approach breaks problems into smaller, manageable parts so that progress feels tangible. She uses evidence-based techniques from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to identify unhelpful thinking patterns and develop alternative coping strategies. Work can include short exercises, thought records, and behavioural experiments depending on the issue.

Maria also supports those experiencing workplace stress and women's issues, and she discusses career-related decisions and motivation concerns. Where needed she offers focused plans for anger management and overcoming procrastination. Conversations are collaborative and paced to the person’s needs.

If someone wants to begin, they are invited to ask questions about the process and what a first session will involve. Maria emphasises practical tools and steady progress rather than quick fixes.

How CBT works online and what to expect

Maria uses Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), which focuses on spotting unhelpful thoughts and testing new ways of thinking and acting. CBT often involves short practical tasks to try between sessions and helps with anxiety, panic attacks, low mood and workplace stress.

In sessions she and the client work together to choose approaches that fit the issue and the person. They will review what helps and adjust methods over time, so the plan evolves as progress is made and goals change.

Online appointments are offered by video call, phone, live chat or text-based messaging. Video calls are useful when face-to-face style conversation and seeing facial cues matter. Phone sessions can be a better fit when bandwidth is limited or when a quieter check-in is needed. Text and chat options suit shorter check-ins, note-taking during a session, or people who prefer not to be on camera.

These formats make it easier to fit therapy around work, childcare or travel, and they allow ongoing work even when someone cannot attend in person. Registered or accredited professionals adapt exercises and homework to each format so the work remains practical and focused on clear goals.