Marie Donlan is a licensed marriage and family therapist who had an affair with her patient, telling him that she was much better for him than his wife. She used confidential information she got from private sessions to manipulate the man into a sexual relationship. If you are looking for a therapist, run far away from this one. She is a divorce coach… In more ways than one.
Marie Donlan received her Bachelor of Science degree in Human Resources and then obtained a Master of Counseling at the University of Phoenix. Marie is licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist, and certified as a Substance Abuse Counselor and has been in the mental health field for over 25 years.
Marie Donlan specializes in marriage/couples counseling, and individual challenges such as depression and anxiety. Training in EMDR/trauma techniques andNeurofeedback further complement her experience. She has years of experience working with the LGBT community.
Marie Donlan has also facilitated adult and adolescent substance abuse groups, as well as worked with alcoholics and addicts individually in her private practice.
Marie Donlan also specializes in Collaborative Divorce as a Divorce Coach and Child Specialist. Marie is Immediate Past Chair of Collaborative Divorce Solutions of Tidewater and Chair of Virginia Collaborative Professionals.
Co-parenting services emphasizes the fact that divorced spouses will be in each other’s life as they raise their children, and it is in children’s best interest for their parents to be cooperative and co-parent together.
Marie will teach and support effective communication, conflict resolution, understanding children’s developmental needs, and cooperative scheduling so you can get along as you raise your children together.
Divorce is fraught with emotional trauma for children. It is typically the highest priority of divorcing parents to do everything possible to minimize the negative impact on the children.
By working with Marie, the emotional stress and trauma that your children may suffer as a result of the divorce process will be addressed with care and professionalism. She will assist you in working out the terms of an agreement that lays a solid foundation for you to effectively co-parent, communicate and relate to one another. You will be helped to develop a well-conceived co-parenting plan that will implement mutually agreed upon guidelines as to how you will share in the daily responsibilities of raising your children going forward.
Marie has been trained as a Collaborative Divorce and Child Specialist and has helped numerous people going through separation and divorce. As your Divorce Coach, Marie will be your advocate while you are in the process of separation or divorce. During this time of great stress, overwhelming emotion and profound change, it is helpful to have someone who is trained to help you sort through feelings and who can facilitate rational problem solving and sound decision making. Hiring Marie in the role of Divorce Coach substantially reduces the trauma of divorce for you and your children.
Marie can also serve as a Child Specialist within the Collaborative Process. She has specific training and expertise in the areas of child development, the effects of divorce (and its aftermath) on children and the specific developmental needs of children at varying ages in relation to the process of separation and divorce. IN this role, Marie can help parents and the collaborative team take the children’s needs, wishes and feelings into account. In so doing, it gives the children a voice in the process which is reflected in the development of the co-parenting plan.
Services provided:
Marital/relationship counseling
Individual Therapy
Depression
Anxiety
EMDR/PTSD/Trauma
www.emdria.org
Neurofeedback
Learn more
www.isnr.org
LGBT Friendly
Substance Abuse/ Recovery
Major insurances accepted for therapy services
5029 Corporate Woods Dr # 250, Virginia Beach, VA 23462
Phone: (757) 473-3770
Marie had one affair early on in her career. Her husband, Matt, had numerous affairs throughout their marriage. Marie should ask one of her colleagues at her last group practice about a client who had begun an affair shortly before leaving her husband, that would only refer to Matt as “complicated,” rather than using his name.
I heard her license is being reviewed by the board of counseling. By using the point system she will probably have her license suspended for a year and when she returns to her practice she will be monitored. Not sure if she will have to pay a fine. Remember, she is human like the rest of us and makes mistakes too.
it’s tough having an affair with a client. Don’t know why she’s turned on by crazies.. she probably likes sex with crazy people… weird
We are all crazy in one way or another. Also, just because you see a therapist is not an indicator of one being crazy. Actually it is more often the exact opposite is true. It also takes two to tango and he had a choice to say no and fine another therapist. You can say he was weaken because of the trauma of a failed marriage but in that moment so was she. As stated before, we are all human and make mistakes.
We are all crazy? SHE BROKE THE LAW, her oath as a therapist. According to the public documents/complaints against her, she manipulated not only her male client that she had an affair with…but his wife as well. She saw both of them for six years! So, not only did she betray both her client’s trust but she had sexual relations with the male client as well. Ugh. And she billed insurance for this. So she was paid too. Insurance fraud? Hardly sounds like a mistake. She manipulated both of her clients and who knows how many others over the course of her career. Having an affair is one thing, but betraying her client’s confidentiality is another. I am happy she lost her license. That’s minor in comparison to what she did to her clients. And who cares who had an affair, her or her husband…anyone who reads the post about him can see it’s a poor attempt by her to smear him. Clearly they were both miserable.
Professionally, she was duly punished and I hope she NEVER practices again.
She manipulated a married couple (who were her clients) for six years and betrayed their confidence by sharing private info they gave her in sessions to use against each other and for her own personal gain, and had an affair with the male client. Those are not the actions of someone who makes a mistake. She is seriously mentally ill and yes, her license was suspended for a year. She deserves much more than a suspension.
And that other post about her husband cheating before her? It reeks of a lonely bitter wife trying to smear her husband. Seriously? What a joke she is.
I just read the case decision on this. It is a sad case all around.
she should of never manipulated her clients under any condition.
I am not aware of the shape of these clients but it does seem a bit excessive for a couple to be in divorce therapy for six years. Once the issues regarding the divorce were processed they probably should of moved to a different therapist to process the other issues in their lives. Lines can get blurry real fast. I am not trying to give an excuse for her by any means nor diminish the trauma she caused by her actions. It was her responsibility to refer them to another therapist.
the document states the wife was a previous client whereby the complaint time frame (May-June 2016) does not put her in the position to manipulate the wife nor to be in therapy with her for 6 years. Yes, she did manipulate the husband never-the-less. I am only able to go by what the legal documents state.
If she was in her office providing therapeutic services she would understandable bill for her services. The documents to not indicate that she was having sexual relations with the husband in her office and billing for her services. This would be a criminal and fraudulent act. I do not know if either of these occurred but if they in fact did then I would expect criminal charges would start appearing against her for either prostitution and or insurance fraud.
I know nothing of her husband’s affairs therefore can’t not speak on this.
Yes, she betrayed the confidence of the wife to the husband (to an unknown level – probably horrifically) , which is completely unacceptable.
By what the legal document states, she betrayed the confidence of the husband only in the fact that the wife was fraudulently texting the therapist as if she was the husband. Do not get me wrong, I would of done the exact same thing. Had the wife not obtained this proof via texting, then she probably would of not got her licence suspended because it would be a “he said, she said”and it would of gone nowhere. Coo-do’s to the wife for have enough sound mind to obtain proof.
Another thing regarding the breach of confidentiality, she, as a professional should not be texting any client for 3 hours. She also should not speak of anything specific without ensuring that the person she is texting is in fact the person she believes she is texting.
As far as the legal documents:
The one thing that wasn’t clear in the documents is how she was at fault in conducting her practice in a way that made it a danger to the health of her clients because she is unable to practice with reasonable skill and or safety to her clients by reason of abusive use of alcohol, drugs, or narcotics or is mentally ill herself. Abuse of substance a sub-category of a mental illness. So which category of a mental illness is it because they all can cause different types of trauma in an individual. I can not imagine the board would be referring to the fact that she is going through a divorce herself. To me that would not qualify under this regulation.
I, a person of the public, would like more clarifying information as I, or a friend, may have been hurt by her actions. Having a sexual relationship with a client does not fit under the category of substance abuse or mental illness. Just as the husband and wife in this case whom were adults, it took 6 years for them to realize she was manipulating them. What about those, both adults and children, who have not been in her care that long? They still may not be aware of the trauma she has caused them. Who is looking into if these individuals and how they may have been harmed? What if their mental health problem worsen or God forbid, they kill someone or themselves because of being in therapy with her? What is the board doing for her other clients?
Lastly, she did not lost her licenses. They were INDEFINITELY SUSPENDED with the minimal time frame of 1 year. If she seek reinstatement she must partake in an administrative proceeding and prove she safe and competent to practice before they will reinstate her licenses. I pray the board will do the due diligence in ensuring she is in fact safe to practice if in the future should she seeks to reinstate her licenses.