Mark Stewart, Ed.S, LMFT-A
Columbia, SC
Therapy for couples, individuals and relationships
About
Let's face it — most people reaching out are in a highly activated state: stressed, worried, and often mistrustful from hard experience. I can help. Together, we can work toward a place of calm, hopeful confidence — and a feeling of being more deeply connected to the people closest to you.
Individuals
From teenage years to later life: Identity, connection, trauma, anxiety, depression, and sexuality, among other concerns. All are welcome.
Couples
Relationship structures of all kinds. Feeling newly seen can be transformative, especially when trust has been broken or trauma is involved.
Families
Whether by blood or by choice. How do you want to be seen and understood?
My Road to Therapy
My practice is grounded in systemic therapy and the idea of the spaces between people; the relational dynamics that shape how we feel, connect, and heal. Emotionally focused approaches resonate most deeply with me and form the foundation of my therapeutic outlook.
​
I hold an Ed.S graduate degree from the University of South Carolina, focused in marriage, couples and family therapy. I have completed my ICEEFT Advaced Skills-level training in this approach (2024) and am continuing toward full certification in EFT. In addition, I have a trauma-informed certification from MUSC and have completed level 1 of the Gottman method of couples counseling.
​​​
Earlier in my career, I worked in mediation and high-stakes corporate negotiation; experience that deepened my understanding of conflict, communication, and what it takes to rebuild trust under pressure. This followed a Master of Science degree from Columbia University in New York City. A native of Oregon, I spent my first professional decades in New York City, then relocated to Columbia, SC for several years, before returning to New England for another long stretch. I am now back happily resettled in the Midlands, parenting adult children with my partner.
​​
These adventures have instilled a strong sense of perspective and an even stronger connection to openness and exploration. A narrative therapy lens also informs my approach: The stories we tell about ourselves and our relationships matter, and therapy can be a place to rewrite these scripts.
" Warm and approachable... a real ability to empathize with the struggle to find peace. "
​
" Helpful, with a positive energy. "
— Themes surfaced in notes received from clients.