About

I am passionate about my work with kids, individuals, and couples. I truly enjoy establishing a relationship with my clients, am curious about learning more about what matters to them in their lives and enjoy collaborating with them to help them resolve the issues that leave them feeling stuck and unhappy. 

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 15 years of experience.  I specialize in overall stress management as well as vital relationship skills such as conflict reduction and communication, and guide clients to treat themselves and others with more compassion. I also help clients identify and challenge the negative stories they believe about themselves, and the people important to them that they are struggling with.

I encourage clients to set and meet their own goals, trust their own inner resources, and to discover how powerful they truly are—because many answers to our struggles lie within.  My job is to help my clients access with their intuitive wisdom to find their own solutions, and to begin a journey of personal knowledge and growth.

I’m married with two children and three dogs. I enjoy reading, exercise, tennis, learning new things and spending time with friends and family.  I live near Newport Beach, CA. 

Barbi Pecenco

Qualifications

License

  • #MFC 50901

Education

  • Masters in Marriage & Family Therapy, Alliant International University, San Diego, CA
  • B.S. In Communications from Ithaca College, Ithaca NY

Training and Certifications

  • Over 3,000 hours as a pre-licensed professional under supervision
  • Certified Brainspotting Practitioner
  • Brainspotting Phases 1 and 2
  • Brainspotting Master Class
  • Brainspotting for Expansion
  • Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy externship
  • Gottman Method Couples Therapy Levels 1 and 2
  • Introductory and Advanced Discernment Counseling training
  • The Developmental Model of Couples Therapy

Memberships

Services

Individual
Therapy

Trained in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), this innovative and creative therapeutic modality aids clients in managing difficult thoughts and feelings, discovering what truly matters to them, and taking committed action toward their goals that are in line with their values.

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Couples
Counseling

With advanced training in two of the premiere couple therapy modalities—Gottman Method Couples Therapy and The Development Model—I teach critical relationship skills including: communication, conflict management, limit setting, repair after things get challenging, and much more.

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Brainspotting
Therapy

For the client who needs to go deeper than traditional talk therapy can offer, I utilize a cutting-edge, research backed, mind-body-relational therapy that utilizes focused mindfulness to quickly and efficiently get to core issues and resolve them. Brainspotting Therapy can reduce the impact of negative life experiences.

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