Family Therapy in Forest Park, IL

Hello, I appreciate you wanting to find out more about me, and how I might be able to help you. I respect that you can speak for yourself and I understand the impact of trauma. I believe that the strength of the family unit is key to each member thriving. You may need to be heard, repair relationships, heal from being hurt and hurting others, or explore new ways of communicating. Facing fears and difficult decisions takes courage. Building better communication and stronger relationships takes time and effort. So, where to start? We can meet, and then you can decide if you feel comfortable with me.

I am a relational therapist who works with individuals, couples, and families. I create a warm and accepting space for you to share your issues and help develop a vision of your desired outcome with a plan for how to achieve it. I help identify what's getting in the way of you having the life you want and provide support as you experiment with making changes as you are ready. I focus on behavioral changes first and move to insight and family of origin work as needed. Feel free to call me to discuss your needs (708) 808-3654.

The thought of starting therapy can be overwhelming, but I appreciate you for making the effort to figure out what's best for you! It's never late to start watering the wilted parts of yourself you've forgotten about. Sometimes you may need more guidance, a fresh perspective, or a chisme break. Whatever it is, we can sort through life's uncertainties together. As a multicultural queer Latina, I believe access and representation in therapy for the Latine community is crucial in eliminating mental health stigma. Aquí puedes tomar su tiempo, you can take your time here and find the pilas or batteries our people keep asking us to get.

I came into the field of therapy because I have always been curious to how and what makes a relationship (romantic, friendship, or family) healthy and successful. Throughout my professional career I have worked with children, adolescents, adults, and families. It’s been a joy for me to empower my clients to develop and become more aware of their triggers, needs, and wants. In every client interaction, I learn the things that you need help with and we work together to put your story together in a meaningful way.

Adult life is complex, full of many responsibilities and accompanying stressors. Difficulties balancing work and home, communicating with others, tensions between relationships and personal goals and achievements. These complex feelings can lead to anxiety, depression, and feeling overwhelmed. I work with adults in all career settings and relationships, as well as with young adults transitioning from adolescence to college and navigating steep life changes. Together we will examine your early life experiences for insight into who you are and to shape your personal values toward realizing contentment.

I enjoy working with kids, teens, and adults facing a variety of concerns, including trauma, abuse, attachment wounds, grief, anxiety, self-esteem concerns, and more. The foundation of my practice lies in creating a warm and gentle therapeutic connection, enhancing strengths, building useful coping skills, and fostering empowerment. I strongly believe that therapy is a collaborative process and feel dedicated to creating a trusting and therapeutic relationship to promote positive change. I'd be honored to work with you!

Working with various populations has taught me the importance of understanding the full individual and their own unique experience in the world. I provide a supportive environment, focusing on symptom reduction while also exploring underlying roots of emotional discomfort. I encourage self-exploration, emotional processing, and self-acceptance. I try to help clients connect past experiences to their current situations, and I utilize the therapeutic relationship to foster clients' growth and self-fulfillment. I find therapy to be powerful and exciting, and I consider it a privilege to help people strive for their potential.

I am interactive, relational and have a great respect for those who have the courage to ask for help. Most people contact me when feeling anxiety or depression due to life's challenges. My intent is to help you alleviate emotional distress as you access inner strength, identify options for change and implement a course of action. Though many of my clients are individuals I have a special interest in couple and family work.

Do you need a space to discover and activate your strengths and help you or your family attain the lasting changes you seek? Many experience challenging issues in their lives that cause them to reach out for help. At Starks Therapy Group, LLC we help individuals and family using techniques from psychotherapy and spirituality. We help folks through these issues and support their process of learning to thrive. We are committed to addressing you as a whole and unique person and taking a creative and strengths based approach.

I see adults for both individual and couple's therapy addressing many common areas of concern, including: stress; anxiety; depression; relationship issues; intimacy & communication; self-esteem & identity issues; work & life satisfaction; meaning & purpose; and general unhappiness. My style is direct and collaborative. I use a flexible approach that is adapted to each individual or couple. My approach is especially effective at getting to the root of issues, sorting through the conflict and confusion, and portraying what the trouble is in a clear new light.

I have 25 years of experience as both a psychotherapist and clinical supervisor/teacher. I work with people with a wide range of emotional issues including: depression, anxiety, relationship struggles, trauma, and early attachment difficulties. I believe psychotherapy is powerful tool and works best with people who are committed to deepening their understanding of themselves and their relationships. I will work collaboratively with you and listen closely as we examine both old and emerging ways of being and managing life's challenges.

I provide therapy for adults, couples and families. Clients frequently are struggling with symptoms of depression, anxiety, grief and loss. My clients are often going thru a medical crisis, managing chronic pain or are dealing with a family member's illness. I also help clients who are grieving or who have issues with aging parents and need a plan and to deal with feelings of sadness. I am a registered nurse as well as a clinical social worker and have advanced training in medical family therapy. I am a very good listener and assist my clients in finding their strengths to help them move forward in life.

I am a Licensed Clinical Psychologist offering therapy services to adolescents and adults in Oak Park, IL. I specialize in the treatment of eating disorders, trauma, depression, anxiety, and relationship issues. In my treatment of complex issues, I provide both individual and family therapy and value collaborating with other healthcare providers for multidisciplinary care. I work from a mindfulness-based and trauma-informed lens, utilizing body-based, symptom-focused interventions and exploring interpersonal relationships as methods to encourage change.

Reaching out for help can be difficult. It takes courage, vulnerability and hope to seek support and be open to seeing things from a new perspective. I specialize in treating anxiety, depression, and family coping. I work with adolescents, adults, families and couples to help them find greater fulfillment from life and relationships. My therapeutic style is warm, empathetic, culturally sensitive, strength based and client centered. As a former medical social worker, I am experienced in helping families cope through the many emotional and practical challenges a medical diagnosis and treatment can bring.

Now Accepting new clients (daytime hours 12pm-5pm). As humans, we experience an endless amount of transitions, highs, and lows that cumulatively come to define who we are. In this process, we may find ourselves struggling with anxiety, depression, and fear of the unknown. In an effort to cope with these challenges, we often develop patterns of thinking and behaving that don't serve us or honor our unique strengths and resiliency. In my practice, I work with individuals to create meaning from difficult experiences and to develop coping strategies that allow them to live with a greater sense of peace, personal power, and authenticity.

As the parent of a struggling child or teen, you may wonder what you can do to help them feel better. I’m here to provide you and your family the support and guidance that will help you gain a deeper understanding of your child, and feel more connected to them. I am passionate and experienced in helping children, teenagers, and their families overcome life's challenges. I have seen many children and teens struggle to express or articulate their emotions. That’s what I am here for. I find playful ways to help children express their inner world while guiding parents to also be curious to what is under their behavior.

I have always been fascinated with understanding how people think, how they have come to believe what they believe and how they have become who they are. I have come to realize that many people simply want to feel heard, understood and cared for. This is part of the reason why I became a counselor, along with wanting to help people and destigmatize mental health. Coming from immigrant parents who came to America to enable their children to live a better life than they did, to them that meant getting a practical & stable job. But with time I realized that I didn't want my life to be just practical – I also wanted it to be purposeful.

My primary goal in working with clients is to provide a compassionate, accepting, mindful space to create an opportunity for clients to work towards the person they would like to be. I support individuals and families who are chronically distressed with a commitment to honesty and compassion. I am experienced with depression, anxiety, interpersonal conflict, adjustment difficulties, family conflict, and trauma. My training is in psychodynamic and family systems therapy, and I utilize modern approaches as well to individualize treatment to client's needs.

I enjoy providing therapy for adults and couples, including LGBTQ+ and non-monogamous couples. I am poly, sex work, and kink - allied and -informed. I identify as a feminist trauma-informed therapist and am EMDR Trained, although I integrate many modalities depending on each client's unique personality and needs. I am a Gottman Level 1 Certified Couple's Therapist and utilize what I learn while working with couples to help individuals experiencing relational issues. My experience includes working with people with anxiety disorders, PTSD/complex PTSD, workplace issues and discrimination, spiritual concerns, and relationship issues.