Portland, Maine therapist
Hi, I'm Cara Kraft, LCSW
A relational, attachment-based therapist in Portland, Maine. I help busy professionals and couples reconnect with themselves and each other, with warmth, honesty, and a real sense of who you are.
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My Story
Finding connection, with yourself and the people you love.
Before I became a therapist, I spent years chasing purpose in one career after another, working hard to look together on the outside while feeling off-track inside. My own therapy helped me unpack the beliefs and pressures that kept me performing instead of connecting, and that experience changed everything. It is the work I help others do now.
So much of what brings people in, the same arguments on repeat, the anxiety that will not let up, the quiet exhaustion of always performing, comes from how we learned to be close growing up. That is not a flaw to fix. It is a pattern that made sense once, and one that can change.
In session, I am warm and direct, not the silent, nodding kind of therapist. I will be present and honest with you, and help you make sense of what is happening under the surface, gently, and at your pace. Healing happens in relationship, with others and within ourselves.
I earned my Master of Social Work from New York University and have been practicing since 2020. I work both in person, from my office in downtown Portland, and online with clients across Maine.
My Approach
EFT and IFS, in plain language
My work is grounded in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and Internal Family Systems (IFS). Both are evidence-based approaches that center on understanding our emotional patterns and inner parts. With couples, that often means naming the negative cycle you get stuck in and finding your way back to each other. With individuals, it means getting curious about the anxious, critical, or protective sides of yourself, and the needs they have been guarding.
It is not about learning to never fight again. It is about finding your way back to each other when you do.
The practice
Working alongside me
Judy Adel
LMFT, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
Judy Adel is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who works alongside me, specializing in helping couples strengthen connection, navigate conflict, and repair the wounds that build up over time. Like me, she practices Emotionally Focused Therapy, the evidence-based approach to couples work, helping partners move past patterns of disconnection and defensiveness toward real safety, trust, and intimacy.
Her training runs deep: EFT for couples, Internal Family Systems Levels 1 and 2, EMDR, and infant mental health, with experience across adults, children, couples, and families. More recently her work has centered on supporting veterans and their families, and on mentoring emerging clinicians as an AAMFT Approved Supervisor and adjunct professor. She earned her B.A. in Psychology from California State University, Northridge and her Master's in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of Saint Joseph.
Judy brings warmth, curiosity, and a belief that meaningful change happens through connection, creating a space where clients feel safe to explore, heal, and grow.
Credentials
Training and background
- Licensed
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), State of Maine
- Education
- Master of Social Work, New York University
Trained in
- EFT
- IFS, Level 1
- Gottman Method, Level 1
- Relational Life Therapy
- Experiential Couples
- Sex Therapy Foundations
- CBT
These are the approaches I'm trained in and keep building on. I draw on all of them in the room, shaped to what each person in front of me actually needs.
You can also find my profile on Psychology Today.
Let's Talk
If you're ready to connect.
A free 15-minute consultation is a low-pressure way to see if we are a good fit, with no commitment either way.