Therapists in Northfield, IL

We often get in places where we feel “stuck” or think “this is just how it is going to be.” The demands of managing academic/professional careers, relationships with friends and family, and emotional difficulties often result in patterns of self-doubt, insecurities, and negative self-worth that leave us feeling alone and overwhelmed. My goal is to provide you the tools and support to see that life can be better and that change IS possible. I will help you capitalize on your already-existing strengths while highlighting patterns of thinking and behaviors that may no longer be helpful in order to live the fulfilling life you want.

I am a licensed clinical psychologist in Illinois, and a pastoral counselor. I have practiced for fifty years. I can help you change and overcome your problems. Using psychological and spiritual resources you will be able to overcome depression, anxiety, relationship problems, anger issues, parent-child conflicts, anti-social behaviors, and problems of purpose and meaning in life. I am able to be helpful to you, whatever your problem is. If you are a person with a problem and is willing to work on your problems you are an ideal client. If you have a problem please telephone me for a free telephone consultation.

Choosing a therapist for yourself or a family member can understandably be a very difficult decision. Reading bios and looking at photographs of therapists can be helpful, but I believe it is essential that you feel as comfortable as possible before committing to working with any therapist. Without commitment or fee, I invite those interested in therapy to speak on the phone or meet with me in my office and talk about their concerns. My intention is to provide you with the best assurance that I am understanding of your needs and can be of help to you or your family member.

My ideal client is an individual who is fearful and discouraged and believes that he or she can never change. He or she is on the brink of failure in a long term relationship or at their career and is literally stuck in the cycle of bad choices and unpleasant results. It has been said to me that sobriety can truly be empowering and change all areas of ones lives. Remember substance abuse does not have to be hard drugs, it can be sugar or overeating. Addiction comes in many forms. CHANGE CAN HAPPEN!! Should we talk?

I have been working for 20+ years with adolescents, young adults, and adults. I am a certified alcohol and drug counselor. I also focus on depression, anxiety, ADHD, adolescent turmoil, adoption issues, healthy parenting, and family/relationship issues. My passion also includes working with young adults and adults on exploring personal growth and life management issues. I have created an alternative to suspension program in numerous local high schools.

Taking the first step to reach out for help takes courage. So often, people have lived with their struggles for years thinking it's just the way they will always feel. The good news is that is most definitely not the case. Support is available and connection is truly the key. At the heart of being human is our universal need for connection. My approach to therapy is relational and attachment based; meaning providing a safe and secure environment that allows for self expression is the starting point, the middle and the end.

When you enter therapy, you give yourself a unique opportunity to explore your needs and feelings, and find new ways to meet the challenges in your life. A crucial ingredient for success lies in your relationship with your therapist. My approach is human, engaging and collaborative. We explore your feelings, reactions, and understanding of your relationships, and develop a deeper, sense of your needs, wishes, and how to fulfill your goals. I recognize that each person has unique emotional needs and struggles and I work actively to help you find new ways to understand, cope with, and resolve your concerns.

In my 45 plus years of practice, I have found that most patients, before coming to see me may have tried to the best of their abilities to solve their problems. They may have consulted other psychotherapists or other allied professionals before coming to see me. The central task is for us to identify the nature of their psychological puzzle, and to find ways to collaborate in finding solutions to them. I have a particular interest in people who may have neurocognitive deficits. Also, I have an interest in children and adolescents whose parents are in the divorce process.

Life can feel overwhelming when you're faced with loss or change. As much as you try to adjust, it can be scary and confusing to realize that life isn't turning out the way you had planned. Life stress -- such as divorce or relationship loss, death of a loved one, job loss, illness, caregiving -- happens to most of us at some point and it can seem nearly impossible to bounce back from such heartache.

Compassion and communication are the hallmarks of my unique approach to strengthening healthy relationships with children, adolescents and adults. I have been making a positive difference in the lives of young people for 16 years and utilize a wide variety of methods and techniques, including, but not limited to everything from play therapy to insight oriented therapy. My work strengthens and empowers people to face immediate and long term challenges independently and successfully.

Finding the right therapist is essential in one's journey toward overcoming obstacles. I believe counseling is a collaborative and creative process where we join together to establish the change you desire. I utilize a direct, honest, and genuine communication style in our relationship. My approach combines psychotherapy and the use of experiential therapy as a means of building communication, trust, and decision-making through individual and family treatment. My treatment also involves the partnership of animal assisted therapy with my Labrador Retriever.

People are not defined by the struggles that they face, but are a complex amalgamation of their environment, biology, and life experiences. My role as therapist extends beyond the goal of simply fixing problems. Through the development of a deep therapeutic relationship lies the opportunity to create meaning out of life's difficulties, heal from painful experiences, and develop greater insight into one's life. Psychotherapy can provide necessary support as lives shift through different phases of development, interpersonal relationships change, and as the environments in which we live, learn, and work evolve.

Children, teens, and adults each approach their problems from differing levels of life-experience and developmentally varied problem-solving skill sets. They also have differing neurological availability to the resources and strategies that their brains can employ. At Collaborators, Inc., we work with people where they are in time, place, development, neurology, and life space. Hearing people process their experiences in this way, and joining with them in making sense of challenges, relationship issues, conflicts, and family history issues makes for a context where people can find new ways to explore their world with confidence.

My mission, as a child and family therapist, is to support and partner with you and your child, if or when life presents you and him/her with difficulties and challenges. My mission is also to provide your child with effective tools in a safe, fun, and protective environment, so that together we can join in finding ways to handle some of those challenges. Some life events and challenges, whether they are physiological, biological, or environmental based, can produce emotional feelings, such as anxiety, sadness, depression, anger and confusion. Those feelings might impact the child's ability to manage or handle those events.

Transitional times in your life sometimes creates angst and stress, which can show up in our bodies in a physical way, as well as, in our relationships. This is an ideal time to engage in therapy. These transitions can occur anywhere in your life; relationship conflict, a break-up, parenting concerns, navigating a new job or a geographical move, graduate school, divorce, family concerns, and health crises, as well as others, which all might result in anxiety or depression.

While relationships have the power to injure they also have the power to heal. When early experiences have been less than optimal, building relationships can be challenging, both inside and outside of therapy. This affects family, friendships, employment and, most importantly, your relationship with yourself. I will work with you on trying to make sense of why certain patterns repeat in your life. We will consider the ways in which you survived past hurts and how that might interfere with living a fuller life today.

I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 25 years of experience in helping people with a variety of presenting problems. Are anxiety, depression, health or relationship issues making you feel "stuck" and keeping you from living the life you want right now? I work collaboratively with my clients building on already existing strengths to help reach the goals of behavioral and emotional growth. My approach is integrative, and I find using cognitive/behavioral and family/systems thinking to be most effective in helping my clients.