Dissociative Disorders (DID) Therapists in 60602

I am interested in helping clients develop curiosity about themselves. With curiosity, we can create new ways of relating to ourselves. This is a tremendous capacity! I want to help the client feel empowered about therapy and have increased insight are some of my goals when working within a therapeutic framework. Clients who are motivated to work, because this is very hard work, and it takes investment of time, money and energy to heal.

Everyone gets stuck now and then, may feel lost or alone. Sometimes you may just need a little support, an unbiased listener to help gain insight or clarity. Other times you may need help to delve more deeply into your emotions to transform and grow. I approach therapy as a collaborative process where together we explore your life challenges with curiosity but without judgement. Although not always easy, therapy can be deeply rewarding. An exploration that will help you reconnect with your inner strength and wisdom, better able to overcome obstacles and to move towards a greater sense of wellbeing.

A certain level of disillusionment exists when your external world doesn't match your internal one. Restless and intrusive thoughts may be hindering your everyday joys or harsh flashbacks affecting your presence and sense of safety. A certain level of growth is wanted, but the pathway how to get there may seem unclear or too difficult. I can help by building upon your already-existing skills and resilience to decrease your shame-narrative with a healthier mental paradigm. I incorporate somatic and experiential techniques into sessions to aid in addressing and processing chronic and pervasive trauma.

I am passionate about working to ensure that underserved and underrepresented individuals, couples and families, have the support and resources necessary to live emotionally healthy and productive lives. I have found that through therapy, I can inspire people to deal with life as they find it and equip them with skills to make it better. I am passionate about helping people and identify their areas of opportunity for growth and guiding them to a place of understanding and action. I am able to encourage, inspire and help people move beyond the current circumstances, to a place of peace and resolve so that they may be successful.

In individual therapy, I emphasize a short-term, time-sensitive approach that is problem focused. During troublesome periods in our lives, powerful ideas about ourselves or about the world can become activated that result in our feeling anxious, sad or depressed. Relief comes from replacing these notions with a more realistic perception of our circumstances and ourselves. A principal goal of this approach is assist clients to learn how to become their own therapist, thereby preventing relapse and decreasing dependence on therapy or when appropriate medications.

Alicia is an EMDR trained licensed clinical professional counselor (LCPC) with certification in Dialectic Behavioral Therapy (DBT). Alicia specializes in trauma-focused therapies, working with diverse age groups and family systems across the Chicagoland communities.

“If we talk, it will get better.” I am here to help those struggling with difficult, internal experiences, such as racing thoughts, feelings of sadness, impactful, difficult memories or other kinds of psychological turmoil. These feeling states may have proposed challenges towards living fully and authentically, which, through our work is something that can change. By way of getting to know and talking through your your inner world, we can work towards relieving the pains that have felt repeated or stuck.

I am a graduate from Northwestern University's Family Institute, and Owner of Watch Hill Therapy, Trauma Specialty Practice in downtown Chicago and in McHenry Co. Our clinicians use a holistic, relational, and collaborative approach to address the many needs that being traumatized creates. We are invested in your long term recovery and the quality of care you receive.

As a mental health professional with 17 years of experience, I have dedicated my life to helping children, adolescents, adults, and families overcome obstacles they face in life. I understand the importance of having a safe space in therapy where you can share your story without feeling judged. It is my hope we can work together in partnership to help you discover clarity, find meaning, and shift negative/destructive mindsets to a more positive/productive one. In addition, I believe everyone has their own intrinsic strengths to draw from, which is an essential part of the healing process.

I consider myself to be a trauma-informed therapist. I believe that each experience in one's life leaves an imprint on the mind & body; thus, informing how one responds to the world. There is a rhyme & reason to these responses, and none of it is about being "wrong," "damaged," or "not good enough" (words I often hear from individuals in my practice). The goal of therapy with me is to help you learn to compassionately connect with, soothe and heal these hurting parts, so that you may be able to let go, engage, and thrive in your personal and professional life. I believe healing is possible for anyone willing to work at it.

I have experience treating children, adolescents, and adults with diverse backgrounds and a wide range of mental health concerns, including anger issues, anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. My training includes integrative, cognitive-behavioral, and mindfulness approaches to therapy, and I work out of a humanistic and person-centered approach. I possess a strong sense of compassion and commitment to helping people, while also creating a safe space to help people get unstuck.

Are you done struggling with anxiety, depression, and relationships? Are you ready to feel fully yourself and alive again? Are you ready to build the life you want to live? My first goal when meeting with you is to establish a genuine & collaborative connection. This'll serve as the foundation for the work necessary to deal with daily feelings, understand experiences & make positive changes to your life. We'll work together to help you feel whole, peaceful, and connected. When you're done with therapy, you'll feel empowered and ready to face whatever challenges life throws at you. I can help you live your passion, purpose & truth.

I love working with people of all cultures who have histories of trauma and addiction and who want to make pivotal breakthroughs in recovery. I work best with patients who engage honestly, directly and courageously; welcome challenges; and want to thrive. We discover and nurture strengths borne of struggle. I specialize in culturally responsive group treatment of trauma and addiction, relationship issues, family dynamics and multigenerational legacies. I empower patients; we tap into their insight, intellect, creativity and spontaneity. I enthusiastically welcome Black, Brown, Indigenous, and other People of Color to my practice.

Are you struggling with anxiety or depression? Low self-confidence or a difficult life transition? Would you like to develop tangible skills that enable you to think and behave in ways that promote increased confidence, internal control, mental clarity and achievement of goals? I utilize the best research-based therapy techniques to help you achieve lasting, positive change. And when experiencing emotional suffering, you may wonder if you could ever feel at peace again. The truth is, it’s possible but it will take work. With my guidance and support, we can make that happen. Recovery is possible!

The step to enter into counseling is a courageous one, it encompasses your willingness to connect, to be vulnerable, and to seek hope in healing. I see counseling as a way for clients to make change, to liberate one’s self from patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving that may not be serving you effectively. These patterns are often imposed by society, family, and ones' own culture and/or gender. Counseling is a space to help navigate all that comes with life’s changes. In practice, I specialize in anxiety, depression, grief/loss, OCD, infertility, postpartum, relationships, job change/loss, and other adjustment related stressors.

You are resilient, capable, and unwilling to settle for the status quo. Your reluctance to fit the mold may complicate things, but it’s worth it. However, sometimes, the space between who we are and who we want to be can feel vast, and life can overwhelm our capacity to cope - in those moments, it takes bravery to reach out for support. Together we will celebrate your uniqueness, investigate the barriers to your progress, increase feelings of self-worth and efficacy and expand upon your existing strengths to cultivate an authentic future full of possibilities.

I believe a person’s identity, values and beliefs guide their path of healing. Therapy can be a way of liberating ourselves from limiting ideas, societal messages, oppression and isolation. I see you as the expert in your experience and collaborate with you to develop a space to learn and grow. My therapeutic approach is both systemic and person-centered with a focus on inherent strengths and resilience. I pull from relational, attachment, family systems, racial trauma and polyvagal theories while using such modalities as ACT, DBT, CBT, TCI-F and Motivational Interviewing. I also draws, when appropriate, from my own experience.

My clients want to make changes in their lives. They believe that healing is possible for both body and mind. When they feel safe enough, they bravely share the old stories about themselves and the no-longer-helpful ways of dealing with the world that kept them feeling sick or stuck. They keep showing up when the going gets rough, because they’ve seen for themselves that they can trust the process, and they’re willing to keep working it until it works, one day at a time.

Life’s challenges happen suddenly. Without warning it feels like you can’t navigate through with confidence and calm. Instead, you are plagued with worry, hesitation, anxiety, and depression. At times, life feels like a ticking time bomb, and you are desperately searching for an effective means to diffuse it. But your coping skills aren’t working well enough, or maybe they weren’t that healthy in the first place. How are you supposed to get comfortable with the challenges you are experiencing, let alone feel you are responding in a healthy way, when everything around you – maybe even your person – can be so unpredictable?