Nurturing growth and authenticity through all parts of life.
Welcome
You are probably here because you are considering therapy. I am delighted you found this page. The search for a therapist is never easy. You are taking a courageous and brave step for your well-being. All are welcome here. I welcome clients of all genders, races, ethnicities, religions, sexual orientations, and relationship contexts. Please feel free and take some time to explore the site and learn more about myself and the services I offer to see if I would be a good fit.
Therapy that is…
Holistic
Embodied
Queer-Celebratory
Relational
Trauma-Focused
Strengths and Value Based
STANDING AGAINST POWER AND OPPRESSION
As a relational therapist, I was trained to consider the systems we live in and engage with on various levels (e.g. individual, relationships, community, and societal). Our world and the Westernized mental health field are saturated in imperialism and colonialism which has left multi-generational traumas and wounds on people. Particularly, when we only treat the symptoms, it does not promote everlasting change, instead, it sets up a power dynamic to uphold oppression where it can keep oppressed people oppressed. It is important to dismantle these systems through destigmatizing and decolonizing care to seek healing, meaning, and connection of all people, their identities, and their culture.
I am in an unprecedented position, as a therapist, to hold space for others’ suffering. I acknowledge my own privilege and blind spots as a white person. I understand our society has been built to put whiteness and power first at the expense and oppression of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). My work to be anti-racist and liberation-focused is ongoing. I work towards being aware of my biases, learning and listening to center culture, identities, and lived experiences of those different from mine as I continue to use my position as a human and a therapist to dismantle oppressive practices such as racism and ethnic cleansing to support systematic and systemic change.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: I acknowledge the land I reside and practice on is stolen land that was originally inhabited by Sauk, Fox, Potawatomi, Ho-Chunk, and Kickapoo Tribes. In order to no longer silence and erase the Native voices of this land, I strive to not only acknowledge the harm done by colonization, but also to learn about the Indigenous people and their struggles, and support their wellness and livelihood in the present and for their future.
Services
I am a Licensed Relational Therapist in the state of Illinois. I have the training and enjoyment of working with individuals, relationships, families, and groups. I also provide educational and consultation services to help students, practices, and businesses.
My focus in all my work is on relationships. I strive to provide a safe and nurturing environment to promote change by breaking old patterns and allowing for further growth. I do this through an active and direct approach allowing you to meet your goals. I will meet you where you are at in the change process and move at the speed at which you feel most comfortable to better utilize your strengths and values to get you to where you would like to be.
My practice is completely virtual and appointments are through a HIPAA compliant telehealth provider.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course you have some questions before getting started. Here are some frequently asked questions people have before starting therapy.
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Yes, I am in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO/ Blue Choice PPO, United Healthcare, and select Aetna PPO Plans. I also can work with out of network benefits. Feel free to learn more about fees or contact me for more information.
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I was trained to be an integrative therapist. What this means, and I truly believe is one model does not fit for everyone and what they want to work on in therapy. I pull from a number of different models and approaches, depending on the client(s) goals and values coming into therapy including Narrative Therapy, Internal Family Systems, EMDR, Solution-Focused Therapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
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Once you have a free consultation call we wilI schedule the first session. In the first session, we begin building our relationship through getting to know one another and your goals and values for our time together. The therapist-client relationship is the most important part of the therapy process. I think the first session is when we can start getting a feel if we understand each other or not. We start doing this by me gathering information about each client as a human, past and present. I also am open to you asking me questions about myself and my approach.
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I believe you get out of therapy what you are willing to put into it. Change takes time AND if you want to see change take effect sooner that will depend on the frequency of appointments along with what you do between appointments. To see that happen weekly appointments are best to start with. I ask we start with our time together with this weekly commitment, yet I understand your schedule (or mine) may not allow for that, so let’s talk about it and figure out what is going to be best for you and your goals for therapy. As shared above, it first starts with our relationship. I ask for at least 4 to 5 appointments to help determine if you jive with my approach and if we are a good fit for one another.
