Therapists in Chicago, IL

I am a bilingual (English/Spanish) marriage and family therapist who is passionate about empowering couples and individuals to improve their relationships, strengthen their boundaries, embrace vulnerability, and most importantly - address and heal from trauma. I believe in the importance of helping clients identify and understand the root cause of their issues to facilitate long-term healing.

In my work, I focus on equipping children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families with the insight, knowledge, tools, and skills to live healthy and balanced lives. Often, my clients already have the personal strengths and relationship skills that they will need to live a healthier life, and my work involves simply helping them uncover and utilize these strengths. I aim to empower clients to advocate for themselves within the contexts in which they live. I strive to provide therapy that is culturally and contextually informed and that integrates psychological research and theory to provide the best and most appropriate care.

Welcome! I am honored to walk alongside you and help you navigate throughout this experience. I am passionate about working with students. This phase of life comes with a unique set of challenges such as adjusting to life transitions, working through school and career stressors, managing relationship and family challenges, and exploring one’s developing identity. I aim to help you navigate stress management, prevent burnout, and set a healthy work/life balance. I also specialize in working with clients with body image issues and eating concerns, and have extensively researched ADHD and concentration difficulties in young adults.

Culturally Competent Therapy specializes in building trust and a therapeutic alliance with their clients, so they are prepared to do the work. Clients, often including licensed therapists, feel accepted to be themselves in a safe environment. Individualized tailored approaches include culturally sensitive cognitive-behavioral and psychodynamic approaches to treatment that may challenge the client's belief system. I enjoy helping clients of all backgrounds discover the root of their problems and understanding the value of cultural factors such as family, race, socio-economic status, work/career demands, and integration of faith.

Welcome to my profile! My name is Stephan, and I'm a licensed counselor with over 15 years of experience helping people overcome a wide range of mental health challenges. As a therapist, my approach is warm, empathetic, and non-judgmental. I believe that everyone has the capacity for growth and change, and I'm committed to helping my clients achieve their goals through evidence-based practices and compassionate support.

Enjoy therapy. I provide in-depth, client specific psychotherapy. I help individuals face and overcome challenges, cultivate hope, and move forward. With comprehensive experience and deep theoretical understanding, I support my clients to move forward safely and securely. I treat clients who have challenges including Personality Disorders, Depression, Grief/Bereavement, Anxiety, Panic, Alcohol and Substance Use Disorders, and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. End-to-end encrypted telehealth therapy with secure email, video streaming, and intake system.

I believe it’s ok not to be ok, and am committed to walking with my clients through the challenges of life. My goal is to provide my clients a safe space to be open, honest, and vulnerable.

Carl Jung once said: "Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes." Coming to therapy is an act of courage in itself and a testament to awakening your heart as a compass. Working together in a safe environment of acceptance and empathic dialogue, we will navigate struggles, develop healthy coping skills, and outline strategies that create hope and healing in the short term and generate meaningful, lasting change in the long term.

Cheers to seeking out assistance with the wrenches that life throws! I am committed to your growth and progress, and together we will collaborate to get you to the place you strive to be! My goal is not to hold your hand indefinitely! My goal is to equip and empower you with tools on how to navigate your circumstance, so that you are not dependent on the therapeutic space. If you are truly motivated to “do the work”, I am the therapist for you!

Clients come to me and receive compassionate care without negative judgment as a means to make meaning of the events of their lives. That new understanding, gained in a supportive coaching relationship with the therapist, becomes the foundation for positive change. Open and self-aware clients tend to want validation of their thoughts and challenges to what hasn't worked. Skeptical clients tend to desire safety and assurance that someone is on their side. Regardless of the category, clients tend to get what they need from one session to the next.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about me! My ideal clients are looking for a strength-based approach where they are more than a "psychiatric diagnosis." My clients come from many backgrounds - they are children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families - and are dealing with depression, anxiety, trauma, grief, women’s issues, anger management, ADHD, autistic spectrum disorder, addiction issues, couples therapy, and working through LGBTQ+ issues. I partner with my clients in the change process and empower them through using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and other tailored approaches.

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the stressors in your life, longing for practical solutions to regain control and balance? Stress, anxiety, and uncertainty have taken a toll on your well-being. You wonder what it would be like to break free from that grip. You tend to bottle up your emotions, but are yearning for a safe space to process and grow. Good news: you don't have to do it alone. Together, we'll unpack the weight of your worries and explore the narratives keeping you stuck. Picture yourself gaining the skills to navigate through life's challenges and reclaiming your sense of stability and confidence.

All my clients are on a journey towards wellness and healing, wherever they may be. I have worked with children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families who have encountered various situations ranging from surviving family and community trauma, domestic violence, housing insecurity, and discrimination to experiencing anxiety, trauma, depression, life transitions, parenting special needs, and terminally ill children. I take pleasure in assisting individuals and couples with their relationships and navigating the intricate complexities involved.

I AM a Professional Questioner, Listener, and Change Agent! Curator of Get Your Mind Right Therapy Services LLC., we work with Pastors/Wives, Ministers, Couples, and Adult Individuals. Our motto: ‘A Healed Mind Leads to a Healed Life’. We expose unhealthy thoughts, behaviors, and patterns helping you create healthy ones, so you can live a fulfilling and productive life! We believe in healing both Naturally and Spiritually! We provide a Confidential and Space of Safety for you to process. We work heavily with the Church Community and understand some of the misconceptions and thoughts people have been taught regarding God and therapy!

As humans, we are wired for connection with one another and sometimes it can be challenging to let down our defenses and open up to others. I believe that being in therapy will allow you to understand your vulnerabilities, identify troublesome patterns, and make concrete changes in the present that will carry into the future. My areas of specialty include relationship concerns, communication, and sex/intimacy issues as well as conflict resolution.

Working from an integrated Solution Focused/Narrative Therapy framework, you can expect that I will adjust my approach to help you wade through and resolve conflicts, emotional paralysis, betrayal and other relational problems, with a newfound sense of agency, hope and courage. While the problems that bring couples in for therapy may seem daunting, perhaps even feeling insurmountable to some, my work builds on the notion that problems are given their greatest opportunity for resolution by cultivating safe, loving, and secure relational attachments.

Deciding to come to therapy can be very scary. Sharing your most intimate thoughts with someone can be even more frightening. This is why I make sure that I create a very safe, caring, positive, and secure place where you can feel comfortable and know that you are with someone who truly cares about your well-being.

I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and received my degree from Loyola University. I have 20+ years of experience working with adults in different therapeutic environments. In my practice, I like to create an ambiance of empathy where clients who have suffered traumatic events in their lives may find a place of refuge and healing. In addition, I assist persons to find purpose beyond trauma and discover their own strengths to build resilience.

People with healthy, positive, and supportive relationships are most likely to be happier and healthier. Whether you are married, dating, or single; we all have relationships. Relationships are not just about other people, but some of us struggle to maintain a healthy relationship with work, food, substances, social media, etc. Whether it's in anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, relational issues, I believe with proper care clients can make healthy changes towards being happier and healthy. Change can be difficult, but my job is to be with you with every step.