Therapists in Oak Park, IL

I am truly grateful when a client allows me the opportunity to play a role in the journey of their lives. I believe therapy requires a combination of compassion, humor, honesty, and stability. I recognize the importance of providing a space to safely process through life struggles and work towards change. Sometimes at the start of therapy, the goals are unclear, or there is limited awareness and understanding into the areas that may need additional support. I will work alongside with you on your journey to help you get there. This will be done through a collaborative, warm, and supportive approach.

Starting on a course of healing takes courage, but it is one of the most rewarding things we can do for ourselves. We have all been hurt at different times, and those hurt parts of ourselves are very grateful when we give them some loving attention and start the healing process. We unconsciously create blocks to our own health, but we can also learn to gently release those blocks. We are actually hard-wired for loving ourselves, believe it or not, even those parts we don't like, are afraid of, or are embarrassed about, and that self-love is healing. Therapy is not an instant process, but is very worthwhile.

I provide a gentle, encouraging environment to help clients work on relationship challenges & infidelity, eating disorders & obesity, as well as career & life transitions. I guide individuals through the dating process into healthy relationships. I have specialized clinical experience in helping people recover from addictions of all kinds (food, alcohol, drugs, sex, gambling, codependency).

Our life's work is helping clients achieve a better sense of self and happiness...more recently we've recognized that without good mental health providers, finding this balance in life can be more difficult and stressful. As a result, we tend toward an Integrative approach and help our clients transform into the people they want to be. We see each client as an individual with many parts to their identity. Utilizing a holistic and systemic approach we help clients reintegrate the parts of themselves to function better as individuals and within their systems. Our focus tends toward a systems based approach using behavior methods.

As a therapist who lives with ADHD, I understand and feel the challenges of life from the point of view of a neurodivergent individual. There are so many difficulties we face every day, and we are not born knowing how to use coping skills and tools to manage them. As a result, the path you’ve been on may be scary, but I want you to know that you are not alone! This is where I come in. I am a trauma-informed therapist that specializes in working with adolescents and adults who experience ADHD, trauma, PTSD, LGBTQIA+, domestic violence, and sexual assault, or are in need of crisis intervention.

Through more than 20 years of experience, I have worked extensively with individuals, couples and multi-generational families providing treatment for a wide range of conditions that affect mood, thinking, and behavior. I grew up in a large & humble home; learning and understanding the complexities of dealing with different types of personalities, sometimes in difficult circumstances at an early age. My goal is to see clients do amazing work in treatment by strengthening their coping skills, removing limiting beliefs, resolving conflicts, and lifestyle changes through a positive way of thinking, feeling, and behaving.

Life is all about relationships--beginning with the one you have with yourself. My goal is to provide a safe place for you to explore your underlying feelings leading to a better understanding and acceptance of who you are and who you can be. I will provide you a supportive relationship as you re-gain control of your life. Changes within often change relationships with others and that can be challenging, even frightening, yet rewarding. We will work together to strengthen emotional bonds with loved ones, cope with grief and loss, deal with trauma, and maintain a sense of inner balance.

My work as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker has focused on working with individuals on their mental health and substance use recovery. My experience has brought me to work with many life transitions and stressors including: substance use, mental health, religious deconstruction, pre-natal and post-partum counseling, domestic violence survivors and criminal justice-involved individuals.

I work best with clients who are troubled by anxiety, depression, relationship issues, losses or trauma, and life transition issues. I provide individual and family therapy for children, adolescents, and adults. I use a variety of treatment techniques including cognitive, psychodynamic, and client-centered therapies as well as behavior management strategies. My research on coping with traumatic life events has prepared me well to work with clients who have experienced trauma and crisis. A life crisis can be debilitating at first, but can lead to a search for meaning and dramatic new growth. It is exciting for me to accompany clients in this process!

I help individuals and couples develop clear strategies to reduce feelings of anxiety, depression and loneliness. Those coping with marital or relationship difficulties, career transitions and parenting issues find my gentle directness helpful in improving the quality of their lives. In a calm, neutral environment, I offer clients the opportunity to understand themselves in a manner that leads to more satisfying family, marital and work relationships. I utilize family systems and cognitive behavioral therapy to help individuals and couples improve their communication skills and navigate the uncertain waters of change.

Our life's work is helping clients achieve a better sense of self and happiness...more recently we've recognized that without good mental health providers, finding this balance in life can be more difficult and stressful. As a result, we tend toward an Integrative approach and help our clients transform into the people they want to be. We see each client as an individual with many parts to their identity. Utilizing a holistic and systemic approach we help clients reintegrate the parts of themselves to function better as individuals and within their systems. Our focus tenhers and fathers navigating prenatal/postpartum depression.

Our most important relationships are also often those we struggle with. I am an expert listener, advisor, and facilitator and, working together, we’ll turn struggles into opportunity and strife into increased connection.

Elena Vassallo has twenty-eight years of experience helping people with anxiety, depression, grief, phase of life transitions, low self-esteem, feelings of meaninglessness, relationship issues and more.

(She/Her/Hers) Over the years, I have built a practice devoted to improving the lives of people from a wide variety of backgrounds, struggling with a number of different issues. More recently, I have shifted my focus from clinical practice to the training of pre-licensed and early career therapists. I very much enjoy mentoring as it gives me the opportunity to share all that I have learned in my two decades of providing psychotherapy.

People seek out a counselor who can guide them--or their child--past their struggles to a better life. They want to get better sooner and stay better longer. For over 20 years, I have had the privilege of helping hundreds of adults, children and adolescents move past problems and achieve their goals --and to make those improvements stick. Some clients face coping with frustration, depression, anxiety, or relationship and family problems. For others, it's dealing with transitions such as divorce, loss and grief, school or relationship challenges, medical problems or job loss. And clients deserve great service.

I welcome clients who see themselves aligned with values in my profile, especially those who seeking a better therapy experience grounded in emotional connection, social justice, and authenticity. Therapy has the potential to be incredibly healing, but also comes from a history of harm, having othered people on the basis of age, race, gender, sexuality, spirituality, and disability. I offer a trauma-responsive relationship through which we can explore narrative healing of your authentic self, commitments to anti-oppressive and anti-racist living, anti-adultist parenting support, and supportive community and relationship building.

I have been in practice for over 30 years and feel that I'm best at dealing with individuals with anxiety, depression and relationship issues. The goal of all my work is to help individuals live up to their full potential. I have an expertise with numerous techniques to accomplish this goal. Traditional insight-oriented, cognitive/behavioral therapy, interpersonal therapy and specialty techniques such as hypnotherapy, biofeedback and relaxation training are just a few of the interventions I use.

All of us need help at some time. My clients tell me they feel understood but not judged when they meet with me - and that their own understanding of themselves and their challenges grows. But I know that effective therapy work must go beyond being cared about and understood. I bring a commitment to helping people change problems in their lives.

Begin Within Therapy was established in 2015. We believe within every person lies a meaningful story. We are a group of therapists who are all attachment-focused and trauma-informed and ready to understand your story. We offer a variety of therapy options to help you meet your goals, that include options outside of traditional talk therapy, as well as more traditional therapy modalities. Please give us a call to speak with our director and determine which therapist would be the best fit for you.