My Story

The Beginning

Hi, my name is Dr. Sandra DiMarco! I am a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist specializing in relationships and addiction.

I officially began my career as a therapist 10 years ago, but really, I was born a therapist. I am first generation Italian American and grew up in a large family with lots of love, and lots of fighting. I began noticing the complexity of human relationships from a very young age. I witnessed the immense amount of love that can be shared between two people, and how difficult it can be to get along with that same exact person.

I remember observing couples during my younger years and wondered why some showed affection to each other, and others wouldn’t. I have always been fascinated about humans and their relationships before I truly even knew what a relationship was.

Growing up, I was nominated “peer mentor” and my first passion in life became helping others. As I grew up even more, life threw me many challenges. I went to multiple therapists and continued to struggle for some time in my own life. Somewhere down the line, I became the person I never dreamed I’d become which leads me into my second passion in life; helping individuals and couples change while ensuring I do everything possible to avoid delivering unhelpful therapeutic experiences.

My Education & Training

I received my Bachelor of Arts degree from Penn State University. At Penn State, I was introduced to the field of Marriage and Family Therapy and was immediately drawn to the idea of becoming a relationship expert. I received my Master’s and Doctorate Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Nova Southeastern University. I had wonderful opportunities at Nova and was selected by the faculty to receive supervision from one of the founding fathers of the field of Marriage and Family Therapy, Dr. Salvador Minuchin.

Earlier in my career, I worked in addiction treatment centers and created family programs for substance users, their spouses and their loved ones which inspired my research study, “Solution-Focused Family Weekends in an Addictions Treatment Facility: An Action Treatment-and-Research Study.” I have focused my research on relationships, addiction and human change for the past several years.

Post-doctorate, I received certifications as an Addiction-Informed Mental Health Professional (CAIMHP) and Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP.) I also am a Clinical Fellow of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy and actively involved in their subchapter, Couples and Intimate Relationships.

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Internationally Recognized Author and Literary Contributor

Solution-Focused Family Weekends in an Addictions Treatment Facility: An Action Treatment-and-Research Study

This study explored the viability of an underrepresented, alternative approach to treatment, and to explore the personal, organizational, and clinical processes occurring throughout the development of a systemic family program implemented in an adult inpatient rehab center with an individualistic approach.

The Craft of Family Therapy: Challenging Certainties

In this book they teach readers basic communication and family therapy skills using some of Dr. Minuchin’s most interesting and illuminating cases. Not only do readers re-learn basic techniques, such as reframing and joining, but they are treated to an in-depth commentary on each case, with Dr. Minuchin emphasizing the techniques he uses that allow him to refocus attention from the Identified Patient to the family as a whole.

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