Meet Your Relationship Experts
Maria Palumbo, LSW
Licensed Social Worker
Relationship, Sex & Individual Therapist
Maria's Academic & Professional Background
Maria is Compass Counseling for Couples and Individuals' lead relationship therapist and Licensed Social Worker in Pennsylvania. After pursuing her Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Gender Studies from Rider University, Maria completed her Master's degree in Social Work at West Chester University. Maria has 13 years of experience working closely with couples and individuals through therapy and coaching, as well as writing, teaching, and leading workshops about cultivating solid relationships and building intimate satisfaction. Maria has been featured in numerous publications on the web and has led luxury retreats in Italy on healing trauma and sexual struggles. Her interviews with her husband on healing from rupture and building a turned on marriage are featured in podcast interviews. Possessing a passion for the work of trauma therapy, Maria also has extensive training and experience in somatic-based therapy for working with trauma survivors.
​
​
​
Maria's areas of expertise include:
-
developing life-giving partnerships through relationship coaching and the therapeutic process
-
facilitating couples in the repair of relationship ruptures such as infidelity and toxic communication dynamics
-
assisting trauma survivors reclaim a sense of joy and pleasure in sex and the body after trauma (i.e. religious, sexual, emotional, physical violence)
-
supporting clients as they work through decisions, challenges and transitions while practicing ethical non-monogamy
-
holding a nonjudgemental space for a client to understand their true sexual identity and unique needs
-
identifying resiliency and creating a path forward with couples grieving infertility
-
creating a safe space for a couple to identify their desires, needs, and boundaries strengthening their sex life
Maria’s personal pursuit of growth informs her life and work; she firmly believes that healing is critical to be a strong and effective therapist. She continues to learn from the wisdom of her 10 year marriage and teaches what she knows works. She also makes ongoing and continual effort in keeping up-to-date on cutting edge tools and evidence-based interventions for treating trauma and building securely attached relationships.
Maria's Areas of Expertise
Maria's Personal Message to You...
“You deserve love. Unyielding, soul-shaking, tuck-you-in-when-you-are-sick love. So many of us were not shown love or at least how to love well, let alone how to cultivate it and sustain it through life's many transitions and hardships. We witnessed our parents wreak havoc on their relationships and made it our mission not to repeat the cycle. Yet we find ourselves experiencing similar conflicts and the coinciding shame. I'm here to tell you pain does not have to ruin you - it has the capacity to deepen you and your relationships. The goal is to transform this pain into a renewed sense of joy and connection, turning triggers into glimmers of intimacy. I specialize in helping you cultivate this connection.
For singles, I offer you a guide to navigate your journey confidently, defining what you want and finally believing you are worthy of it. To those in partnership, I provide you with practical and effective tools that build a safe harbor for your love and desire, making it stronger through the many storms of life. I show you how to trust yourself and your partner, offering tools that you can utilize daily to strengthen your relationship. It sounds impossible, but the couples I have coached over the past decade are a testament that it is not! Schedule a 20-minute consultation today to get started.”
Deborah DePolo, LPC
Practice Founder, CEO & Clinical Supervisor
Licensed Professional Counselor
Doctor of Marriage and Family Therapy Candidate
"Hi there! I'm Deb, founder and CEO of Compass Counseling and Associates since 2015 and now Compass Counseling for Couples and Individuals. As a Doctor of Marriage and Family Therapy Candidate, over two decades of marriage to my husband Pete, as well as being a full-time business owner and mom to four doggos, and three teens (how time flies!), all I can say is what a CHALLENGING, yet BEAUTIFUL ride it has been! I understand FIRSTHAND both the rewards and struggles you may be experiencing in your personal, couple and family life, which is why I felt called to open a new Compass sister practice, bringing a team of HIGHLY SKILLED RELATIONSHIP SPECIALISTS to Malvern to serve YOU!  Relationships are so rewarding and yet such hard work. Managing to stay an individual in the midst of juggling all of the responsibilities of life can at times seem nearly impossible! And yet relationships, both with ourselves and our loved ones, are SO fundamentally important to our mental health. Our clinical relationship experts work with both individuals and couples with a focus on how we relate to and are impacted by the connections that make our lives most meaningful (and at times most stressful!). We would love the honor of working with you, so please feel free to have a look around the site and reach out with questions or to schedule a consultation with one of our team!"
