Donna Marie Marino, LMFT

03/12/2026

My chapter in Femme Led is called:

“The Epidural Blinded Me.”

It’s not a title people expect.

But it holds a moment that changed the trajectory of my life.

For many years, I moved through life the way many women do. Carrying responsibility. Meeting expectations. Doing my best to be present everywhere I was needed.

I loved my work. I loved my children. I believed I could hold it all together through competence and sheer will.

Until one day, standing beside my daughter during a medical procedure, something in me saw clearly what I had been missing.

Not because I felt more.

But because I finally paused long enough to notice.

That moment became the beginning of a very different understanding of leadership for me.

One rooted in discernment, presence, and alignment.

That is the story I share in this book.

If you’d like to read it, the Kindle version is available for preorder.

https://amzn.to/4cY8uUp

Red Thread Publishing

03/10/2026

There are moments in life when everything comes into focus.

Moments when the pace we’ve been keeping, the roles we’ve been carrying, and the life we’ve been managing suddenly ask to be looked at more honestly.

I wrote about one of those moments in a chapter for a new anthology called Femme Led: Hard-Learned Lessons from Women in Leadership.

It’s a deeply personal story about a moment with my daughter that changed how I understood leadership. Not leadership as a title, or a role, or something we perform for others.

But leadership as the quiet courage to see clearly and choose what matters most.

This book brings together the voices of many women who have walked their own paths of responsibility, reinvention, and truth. I’m honored to be one of them.

The book officially releases March 24, but the Kindle version is available for preorder now.

If you’d like to read it, you can order here:
https://amzn.to/4cY8uUp

Red Thread Publishing

02/14/2026

Valentine’s Day can be sweet and celebratory.

It can also be tender.

This year, I’ve been thinking less about roses and more about the quieter forms of love. The kind that doesn’t need a spotlight to matter.

The steady presence.
The small “tell me more.”
The choice to turn toward someone instead of away.

In my newest reflection, I write about attunement, about the Gottman principle of turning toward, and about how love is less about intensity and more about presence.

If this season brings joy to you, I’m celebrating that.
If it brings grief or longing, I’m holding space for that too.

Wherever you find yourself today, I hope you feel reminded that love is not just something we receive. It’s something we practice.

You can read the full piece here:

Explore how small acts of presence create deep connection. Donna Marino shares how attunement, service, and heart-centered leadership ground true love.

02/13/2026

I was born in Brooklyn and spent my early childhood in Astoria, Queens.

Before I knew what a melting pot was, I was living in one—it was simply my world.

My first crushes. My best friends. My neighbors.
Puerto Rican. Colombian. Black. Indian. Greek. Creole. Italian.

Difference didn’t need explaining—it simply was.
And belonging happened naturally.

My maternal grandfather immigrated from Spain. He never learned English—only Spanish.
My mother was fluent. Her family lived in Puerto Rico before settling in New York.
My paternal great-grandparents crossed the sea from Italy through Ellis Island.
There are Ukrainian and French threads in our lineage too.

And my children are a beautiful blend of all of that—
Italian, Spanish, Ukrainian, French—
African-American and Cherokee Indian heritage too.
We are our own small family tapestry of history, courage, and love.

This wasn’t something I was taught.
It was lived. It was relational. It was human.

As the Winter Olympics unfold in Milan with a theme centered on harmony, I’ve felt a quiet resonance.
Armonia—Living in Harmony—has always been more than a name.

It’s a way of seeing. A way of being.
A commitment to creating space where people are welcomed, safe, and met exactly as they are.

We are here because someone before us was brave.
Because someone crossed water.
Because someone chose hope.
Because someone believed in their dream.

Living in Harmony. 🤍

01/29/2026

January often comes with so much pressure — new goals, new expectations, a sense that we should already be moving faster.

But for many of us, this season feels quieter… heavier… more tender.

I wrote this reflection as an invitation to approach these times differently. To return to charity — not just as something we give away, but as something we practice with ourselves.

Charity as patience.
Charity as compassion.
Charity as choosing gentleness when the world feels loud.

If you’re feeling weary, uncertain, or in-between, I hope these words meet you where you are.

🤍 Read the article here:

In a season that often demands more, choose compassion. Discover how charity — to others and yourself — can be a healing force in hard times. A reflection from Armonía.

12/22/2025

Last December, I cried over lightbulbs.

Sitting in the middle of the unfinished Armonía building, surrounded by paint cans and tools, I felt overwhelmed and unsure if everything would come together in time. It sounds small now — but in that moment, it felt like everything rested on one missing detail.

What I didn’t realize then was that it wasn’t about lightbulbs at all. It was about surrender. About reaching the edge of what I could control and learning to trust something deeper.

As we close out this year, faith feels like the lesson I keep returning to — not faith as certainty, but as quiet trust. Trust that something good can be unfolding even when we can’t yet see it.

If you’re ending the year feeling tender, reflective, or unsure of what’s next, I hope this piece meets you gently. You don’t need to have it all figured out. Sometimes trusting the timing of your own unfolding is enough. 🤍

In this powerful reflection, Donna shares how a moment of overwhelm led to a deeper understanding of faith, surrender, and trust—just in time for the new year. A must-read for anyone navigating transition or seeking peace.

12/17/2025

When I first dreamed of Armonía, I wasn’t just envisioning a wellness space — I was imagining a community.

This fall, Armonía Counseling and Armonía Life Design were honored in the Fishers Community Votes awards. While I’m deeply grateful, what these recognitions truly represent is you. Your trust. Your courage. Your willingness to show up — sometimes on your hardest days — and allow yourself to be supported.

Healing was never meant to be a solo journey. So much of what we carry — grief, burnout, transitions, longing — becomes lighter when it’s witnessed and held in community. That belief continues to guide everything we do at Armonía.

As we look ahead, I’m excited about what’s coming: new group offerings, creative spaces for children, and gatherings that invite reflection and connection. If your heart feels a tug reading this, I hope you’ll read the full reflection I shared and stay close as this next chapter unfolds.

From the bottom of my heart — thank you for being part of this community. 🤍

Armonía Counseling and Armonía Life Design were voted top providers in Fishers, Indiana. Explore how community-based healing, therapy, and wellness continue to thrive — and what’s ahead in 2026.

11/29/2025

Grateful🙏 to have been voted by our great community of Fishers! Accepting new clients ;

11/06/2025

Something beautiful is taking shape. 🌿

In May 2026, I’ll be leading a Women’s Wellness Respite on Italy’s stunning Cilento Coast — a quiet, intimate gathering designed for women ready to slow their pace, rest deeply, and reconnect with what matters most.

We’ll spend seven days in two private villas tucked between olive groves and the turquoise sea… mornings without rush, evenings filled with laughter, and days devoted to presence, reflection, and renewal.

✨ Registration isn’t open yet — but it will be soon.
Details will only be released to the waiting list, and space is intentionally limited.

If this speaks to your heart, join the waiting list here for early access:
👉

May 15-22, 2026 on Italy's radiant Cilento Coast. This is an invitation to slow your pace, breathe deeply, and savor the beauty of presence.

11/04/2025

This time of year always brings me back to one of my favorite lines by F. Scott Fitzgerald:
“Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.” 🍂

Lately, I’ve been reflecting on what it means to start over — not through dramatic change, but through small, sacred shifts in how we live our days.

In my newest article, I share what slow mornings look like for me, how I “bookend” my days with care, and why discernment is one of the most loving practices we can give ourselves.

If you’re craving more ease, clarity, or alignment this season, I hope this piece offers a gentle nudge toward slowing down and coming home to yourself.

🕯 Read here → https://thedonnamariemarino.com/blog/counseling-fishers-indiana-fall-intentional-living

📬 If you’d like to learn more about working with me or an Armonia Life Design practitioner, email donna@armonia-counseling.com.

Donna Marie Marino, counselor and founder of Armonía Life Design in Fishers, Indiana, shares how slow mornings and intentional rhythms can help you reset this fall. Discover how to reconnect with yourself during seasonal transitions through therapeutic insight and everyday practices.

11/02/2025

When I first imagined Armonia Life Design, I didn’t dream of square footage—I dreamed of people.

This piece tells the story of how a dusty 1950s garage became a sacred studio through generosity, presence, and a whole lot of heart. We didn’t wait for perfect. We showed up. And in the showing up, a community was born.

If you’ve been craving a healing space that feels human and welcoming, this is the heartbeat behind what we’re building: care that happens in sessions—and in the quiet in-betweens we create together.

📖 Read:
👉 https://thedonnamariemarino.com/blog/love-shows-up-part-2

At Armonía Life Design (Fishers, Indiana) we’re accepting new clients virtually across Indiana and in-person in Fishers. What we offer:
• Marriage counseling / couples therapy and premarital counseling (attachment- and Gottman-informed)
• Individual therapy for anxiety, grief, life transitions, and relationship trauma
• Recovery from betrayal trauma and narcissistic abuse; divorce recovery
• Trauma-informed yoga (private and small group), Reiki, sound healing / community sound baths for nervous system regulation
• Art therapy for children and young adults (creative processing, emotional regulation)
• Biosound Therapy for anxiety, panic, and emotional overwhelm; Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) for trauma reprocessing

Looking for a therapist virtually in Indiana or in-person in the Fishers area? Reach out: donna@armonia-counseling.com.

Discover how Armonía transformed a garage into a sacred studio space—proving healing starts with people, not perfection in Fishers, Indiana.