My Approach to Helping

I love helping people become free to live their life with strength, wisdom and confidence. My approach to counseling, therapy and coaching, developed over the past 27 years, is focused on you and I working together as a team on your goals, in a comfortable, accepting, and non-judgmental way. In the first session or two I will hear your story and what your goals are. After that, we will start working on a menu of practical tools and strategies aimed towards helping you feel better, calmer, happier, more confident. Once you have learned some good coping tools, then we can explore anything from your present situation in life or your past history that might be holding you back from living the life you desire to live. If there are things from your past or present that interfere with your life, I have a number of powerful strategies that can help you release any negative emotional charge you may be carrying in your body & mind about that. People who see me typically do not spend an hour just "talking" about a problem, but rather learning ways of dealing with the problem more effectively. I am interactive and willing to give feedback on your ideas. I believe good therapy can take place in a short amount of time, or sometimes it needs more time, depending on how complicated someone's concerns are. My philosophy is always "strengths based," helping you discover and more effectively utilize the strengths already within you, or to help you develop new ones.

Though I use a wide variety to tools and strategies in my work with people, I have become certified in three models of therapy that I think are particularly powerful in helping people to become more free in their lives: (1.) Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing or EMDR; (2.) Heart-Centered Hypnotherapy; and (3.) Holographic Memory Resolution. Please contact me if you have any questions about them, or about how I do therapy.

I offer monthly groups called, "Happiness Breaks," that are about facilitating you in learning ways of raising your happiness level, and developing greater resiliency. They meet once a month on a Tuesday evening. Upcoming "Happiness Breaks" are scheduled for 1/8, 2/5, 3/12, and 4/9. They are held in Schaumburg, IL. The cost is $35 per session, which is not covered by insurance. Call 847-781-1407 or email to register for one or more groups.

More Info About My Practice

My fee is $100 for 45 minutes, or $130 an hour, for an Individual Psychotherapy session. I am currently on the following insurance panels: Blue Cross & Blue Shield, Cigna, and Aetna. If you are with one of these, I can bill your insurance and accept whatever they say is your co-pay. If you are with another insurance company but still would like to work with me, you would pay the fee but then seek reimbursement from your insurance company yourself. I have the paperwork for that, and I can help you fill it out, as an "out of network" provider.

Specific Issue(s) I'm Skilled at Helping With

Most people who work with me are seeking to: (1.) Become happier and want to learn to effectively manage stress, worry or anxiety; (2.) Adjust to a difficult transition in their life, such as a job loss, a geographical move, cancer treatment or any other life situation that contributes to feeling overwhelmed or off balance; (3.) Learn how to enhance performance and build confidence in such areas as, public speaking, performing arts, academics & test-taking, sports competition, job interviewing, or interacting socially; (4.) Become free of the effects of traumatic events, recent or long ago, such as, the death of a loved one, any catastrophic event, or any past abuse. People often tell me they feel more free, more confidant, and more at peace as a result of our work together. That is both exciting and gratifying, and that is why I love doing what I do.