Psychoanalytic Therapists in Chicago, IL

***Please note: I do not currently have openings for new clients and I do not anticipate availability within the next few months. Please feel free to contact me if you would like assistance with referrals or if you would like me to contact you when I have availability. Thank you.***

Starting therapy shows great courage and hope. I will collaborate with you to explore and reduce overwhelming feelings of worry and sadness while helping you better manage relationships in your life. I am guided by the belief that human relationships can be healing and aim to develop an authentic connection with my patients.

Psychotherapy relieves emotional distress by restoring and cultivating its participants' inborn capacities for thought and growth. We all engage the world in idiosyncratic ways developed over the course of our lives, and emotional suffering results when such adaptive measures go awry or no longer serve their original purpose. Repetitive unsatisfying relationships, low self esteem, anxiety, and other psychological symptoms can be alleviated when their origins are understood and reworked in the context of an ongoing therapeutic conversation.

Our unhappiness is often due to repeating patterns, the "whys" of which can be puzzling to ourselves and others. These patterns prevent us from experiencing joy and contentment, enjoying healthy intimacy with others and living a meaningful life. I am committed to offering therapy that allows you the space in which we can look with honesty and self-compassion at your unique history, patterns and circumstances with curiosity and openness. I see my role as facilitating and accompanying you on a journey of self-discovery. My goal for you is to "be who (you) are and be that well."

I work with people who want to overcome personal obstacles that seem to recur again and again. While it is sometimes possible to face such issues alone, you may reach the point where another set of eyes and ears is necessary. Difficulties such as anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, trust, and anger issues, can be more complex than they first appear. Together, we will pay close attention to the way you experience yourself and others. Over time, you may begin to see and do things differently and with a greater sense of freedom and authenticity.

I help individuals with various concerns who are looking to improve their lives. For some, this means overcoming anxiety, depression, life transitions, relationship challenges, or low self-esteem. Others may feel vaguely empty, unfulfilled, or stuck. I believe that the path to meaningful change begins with a deep understanding of how one thinks about and relates to oneself, others, and the world. Like the individual, each therapeutic relationship and process is unique.

Whether you're dealing with a new crisis, or have been struggling for a very long time, therapy provides insight and self awareness which can help lead to a healthier and more satisfying life. I provide therapy for adults and adolescents wanting to explore a variety of concerns and issues including anxiety disorders, OCD, depression, trauma, panic disorder, and grief and loss. I am passionate about my work and consider it a privilege to be of help.

My work is psychoanalytic , which means I attend to feelings/beliefs that emerge from one's lived experience/history and that interfere with living fully, creatively, and freely in the present. I believe that psychotherapy, at its best, is a deeply transforming experience that emerges within an intimate and private space in which you are listened to, understood, and responded to with intelligence and compassion.

I have had the honor and privilege of working with adults who are experiencing challenges with anxiety, depression, postpartum difficulties, parental conflict, life transitions, family dynamics, trauma, abuse, relationship dynamics, and other life challenges. I am eager to help and support you on your journey to becoming the best version of yourself. As a POC who also speaks Spanish I also strive to consider the systems that impact our ability to achieve what we want in life.

Too often psychotherapy focuses on causality, pathology and cures. However, rather than being "sick" or 'broken", often we are just lost inside ourselves or relationships. Everyone is a unique person with their own story, experience and perspective. The goal of therapy is to achieve a deeper awareness of where we are, to discover internal meaning for our many experiences, and to experience a life worth living. While working towards that awareness, I feel that it's also important to teach healthier coping skills to assist in dealing with the anxiety and day to day stressors that bring individuals to therapy.

Psychoanalytic therapy is unique because it takes up the question of the individual — your particular history, your singular experience, and importantly, what you have to say about it all. We live inside, as well as outside, of the systems that give our lives shape — cultural, family, language systems. I center my listening on your particular experience within these systems. In this way, psychoanalytic work is especially suited to address causes of suffering.

Psychodynamic therapy focuses on providing a safe environment from which a therapeutic relationship can grow. Through this experience, feelings and thoughts outside our everyday awareness come alive and can be used for self-understanding and growth. As a result, change tends to occur. I assist clients with a range of life situations and emotional concerns, and am interested in working with individuals who have difficulties in relationships, with anxiety, depression, and self-esteem, and who have experienced parental loss and trauma.

People who seek psychotherapy feel stuck and stressed. Psychotherapy is an emotional learning process which takes place between a therapist and a client. Within this joint endeavor, the therapist's role is to actively listen and offer interpretations/suggestions. The client's role is to be as open as possible about his/her feelings and life situation and to engage with the therapist in a productive dialogue. The mutual goal is to facilitate the individual's self knowledge and arrive at a new understanding about the presenting problem, thereby freeing up the person to resolve the difficulty and become happier.

During the lifespan people can experience suffering or emotional pain. Some are in need of relief from the manifestations, or even symptoms, of emotional pain. Others are curious to understand the source(s) of the suffering. Exploring emotional pain and its origins can lead to knowing oneself more deeply (including talents and other positive qualities). Some considering therapy are seeking to enhance their abilities to relate to significant people in their life. Any of these are good reasons to consult a well-trained and experienced therapist. I am available for such consultation, which can lead to a collaborative plan tailored to you in order to explore and ease any of the above impedances to leading a more satisfying and meaningful life.