Therapists for college students near Chicago, IL

I hold a deep belief in each person’s ability to heal and grow — no matter where they’re starting from. With several years of experience in mental health practice, I’ve supported people through a wide range of life challenges, always with compassion, radical acceptance, curiosity, and respect. I aim to create a warm, nonjudgmental space where you can show up as your full self — messy parts and all. My approach is trauma-informed, rooted in Internal Family Systems (IFS), psychodynamic theory, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), and somatic and mindfulness-based practices. That might sound like a lot — but at its heart, it means I listen closely, pay attention to what’s happening inside your body and nervous system, and help you get to know the deeper patterns shaping your thoughts, feelings, and relationships. I have a deep commitment to working with individuals from immigrant and bicultural backgrounds. I understand the complexities of navigating multiple cultural identities, generational expectations, and the emotional weight that can come with migration. Therapy with me is a space where all of that — your story, your resilience, and your pain — is honored and held with care. In our work together, you can expect a collaborative and depth-oriented process.I create a space where you can feel deeply seen and safely challenged. I don’t shy away from the harder, deeper layers of healing — and I will support you with gentleness, skill, and curiosity as you move through them. Whether you're facing anxiety, relationship challenges, identity questions, intergenerational trauma, or simply seeking more clarity and connection in your life, I’m here to walk alongside you.

Are you feeling depressed, anxious, and/or stressed in your life? Are you looking to find inner peace and strength within yourself? If this sounds like you, I would like to help guide you on that journey of relieving your worries and making positive changes in your life. My approach allows you to take the lead in our sessions while incorporating drama and other expressive arts in order to unlock hidden meanings. I am here to help you understand and begin to heal from those everyday worries by helping you express yourself through different art modalities when sometimes words are unable to encapsulate those feelings. If you are someone interested in talking about cultural-related issues, cultural and historical trauma, cultural acceptance, and LGBTQ+-related topics, I am here to support you through collaboration, acceptance, and resiliency. Reach out today!

Jaclyn Weiss, LSW, is dedicated to creating a safe, non-judgmental therapeutic space for clients throughout Illinois. She brings warmth and compassion to her practice, fostering a comfortable environment where clients can work on their mental health challenges. Jaclyn specializes in helping adults and seniors manage conditions like anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). With extensive training in evidence-based practices, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Exposure Response Prevention (ERP), she offers a structured approach to equip clients with coping skills and emotional regulation techniques. Jaclyn is particularly passionate about supporting clients through life transitions, including midlife changes, later life adjustments, and health-related challenges. She works with individuals experiencing grief, helping them process loss and build resilience.

My practice is guided by curiosity and nonjudgment. Therapy is a place to let go of shame, where all topics can be brought to the table. My goal is to provide a safe space where we can question, cry, laugh, and feel it all together. My style is deeply empathetic and introspective with a sense of playfulness and lightheartedness. I practice from an emotions-focused, attachment, and psychodynamic lens. My approach also includes existential, narrative, trauma-informed, and harm-reduction frameworks. As a Certified Yoga Instructor and Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP) who has trained in Somatic Experiencing (SE), I enjoy incorporating somatic work to deepen the therapeutic process via movement, breath work, and somatic mindfulness. I work with folks with ADHD/neurodivergence.

I help students manage anxiety, family or personal crisis, relationship struggles, and life transitions. My approach is warm and client-centered, drawing from ACT, CBT, EFT, and psychodynamic tools. I believe you already have the answers, and together we'll break challenges into manageable steps. My goal is to create a supportive space where you feel heard, confident, and empowered to grow. My pronouns are she/her.

Progressive Psychological Healthcare is a private practice and has a multi-disciplinary team of clinicians with a variety of specialties and clinical expertise. At our practice, we address the psychological needs of clients and offer an individualized therapeutic technique, plan, and approach for each client or family. Our evidence-based treatment along with our comprehensive system that involves interviewing, consultation, collaboration, and relationship building offers the most balanced and progressive approach for each one of our clients. Our clinical work revolves around being supportive, flexible, and progressive. Our clinical team is dedicated to providing the most effective therapy treatment that allow our clients to see progression in their mental health and overall life satisfaction.

Life can feel overwhelming when emotions seem too big to handle or when you’re trying to figure out who you are. You might feel anxious, misunderstood, or caught between different worlds — wanting to belong, but unsure where you fit. Whether you’re a teen navigating pressure from school and family or an adult balancing expectations, grief or identity, therapy can be a space to breathe, slow down, and reconnect with yourself. As a trauma-informed, DBT-certified bi-lingual therapist, I help clients learn to regulate emotions, build confidence, and recover from experiences that have left them feeling disconnected, grieving or stuck. My approach combines practical coping tools with genuine curiosity and warmth, so you can better understand your emotions and develop resilience in everyday life. Together, we’ll explore your story at your pace, honoring both the pain and the strength that brought you here. My goal is to create a space where you feel safe to be honest, to grow, and to move toward a life that feels authentic, balanced, and your own. You don’t have to carry everything alone — healing begins when you allow yourself to be supported. I graduated in Rutgers University with a BA degree in psychology, 2022. After that, I pursued a mental health counseling master degree in Johns Hopkins University. In therapy, I am solution focused and use approaches that are supportive and effective: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Play Therapy, Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), and trauma-informed care. I also incorporate mindfulness and practices rooted in Buddhist and Taoist traditions that honor your unique cultural background. I believe in meeting you where you are, respecting your lived experience, and working together to help you reconnect with your strengths, process your pain, and move toward a more meaningful life. Therapy doesn’t have to feel clinical or distant—it can be collaborative, warm, and deeply healing. If you’re ready to take the next step, I’m here to walk with you. I will be working virtually and from the Lakeview Office. 如果你因为学业感到压力重重，对自己的身份感到迷茫，或者正在努力寻找归属感，请相信你并不孤单——你不需要一个人面对这一切。我专注于帮助青少年、青年和成年人，他们正在经历重大转变、身份困惑、被误解的痛苦，或者在以神经多样性身份生活中挣扎。 无论是学业压力、焦虑、倦怠、失落，还是对自己和未来的疑问，我都会为你提供一个安全、没有评判的空间，让你可以完全做自己。我也特别支持移民家庭、第一代移民，以及在多重文化之间寻找平衡的人。作为一名双性恋的亚裔女性，我深深扎根于中美两种文化，我理解在复杂身份中穿梭所带来的重担——也理解那其中的力量。 在治疗中，我运用既支持性强又有效的方法：接纳与承诺疗法（ACT）、认知行为疗法（CBT）、游戏治疗、焦点解决短期治疗（SFBT），以及创伤知情的治疗方式。我也融入了佛教和道教中与正念相关的文化实践，来尊重并接纳你的独特文化背景。 我相信从你所在的位置出发，尊重你的生活经历，与你携手合作，帮助你重新连接内在力量、处理情绪创伤，并迈向一个更有意义的生活。心理治疗不需要是冷冰冰的或距离感强的——它可以是协作的、温暖的、而且具有深度疗愈作用的。 如果你已经准备好迈出下一步，我会在这里，陪你一起走下去。

Linda Quizhpi is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Illinois who has been practicing since 2016. She graduated from Loyola University Chicago with both her bachelor's and master's. Linda has worked with a wide range of age groups and diverse populations. Linda takes into consideration all aspects of a client's life as a whole in order to create a unique treatment plan to help address one's needs. She specializes in cognitive behavioral therapy, trauma focused interventions, dialectical behavioral therapy, exposure therapy, play therapy, and person-centered interventions. In her free time, Linda enjoys reading, journaling, and working with local advocacy groups aiming to promote positive change.

Please visit my profile to learn more about my services.

Samuel Rentschler, LSW, creates a supportive and collaborative environment for clients. He believes every individual is the expert of their own experience, and he encourages clients to make use of their own expertise to accomplish change. Samuel earned an MSW from University of Michigan. He treats adults with a wide range of challenges, including depression or anxiety, individuals experiencing distress from change or circumstance, and people who are looking to learn new tools or skills to take their mental health into their own hands. In therapy, Samuel's style is strength-based and helps clients identify clear goals by identifying relevant problems and workable solutions. His approach incorporates client self-reflection as well as teaching skills to help achieve the goals they create.

Please visit my profile to learn more about my services.

Ben prioritizes establishing authentic relationships with clients as the foundation for therapeutic growth. He practices from a client-centered approach, providing individualized care based on each person’s needs. In therapy, he is highly collaborative, providing skills and empowering clients to overcome life’s difficulties. His therapeutic foundation is Rogerian in nature, while pulling from CBT, DBT and mindfulness-based practices. Ben specializes in working with individuals suffering from depression, anxiety, PTSD, substance-abuse disorders, and problem gambling. He has also worked with couples and has co-authored academic papers on the treatment of depression through couples counseling. Regardless of the concern, Ben works closely with clients to provide best-in-class therapy for his patients.

People often seek therapy when emotions feel overwhelming, patterns feel hard to shift, or relationships become difficult to navigate. Therapy can offer a grounded space to better understand yourself, strengthen coping skills, and build healthier connections. I work with children, adolescents, and adults navigating anxiety, trauma, chronic stress, ADHD, neurodivergence, identity-related and LGBTQ+-related concerns, as well as relationship challenges, family dynamics, and major life transitions. In our work together, we explore emotions as meaningful signals rather than problems to eliminate, while paying attention to how they show up in the body. I use evidence-based approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), attachment-based work, and mindfulness, integrating a relational and systems lens. My goal is to help you respond with intention, build self-awareness, and develop practical tools for lasting change. Therapy does not need to feel overly clinical or intimidating. I bring curiosity, steadiness, and occasional gentle humor into our work while staying focused and intentional. Seeking support can feel vulnerable, and I aim to offer a space where you feel supported, capable, and understood. If this approach feels aligned, taking that first step can open the door to meaningful change.

You can expect me to be warm, caring, and honest as we grow into and establish our therapeutic relationship, tailoring our work to your preferences, needs, and goals. Many of the individuals and couples I work with experience anxiety, college/professional/work-related stress, interpersonal relationship issues, life transitions, depression, and unresolved trauma. In this work, I approach therapy with a strengths-based, LGBTQIA+ affirming, and trauma-informed lens and depending on your needs, I may pull from a variety of approaches

Chicago Psychology Services is a group psychology practice that treats diverse populations, using evidence-based treatments, with a holistic approach. We believe that people deserve to live healthier, happier lives, but also more fulfilling, creative lives. Our team has experience with academic issues such as stress, adjustment to campus life, life transitions, and the need for self exploration self at this fruitful time in your life. We help people from all walks of life, and are very focused on assisting the next generation of leaders and creatives to achieve their goals, both personal and academic. We offer psychotherapy, psychological testing to to clarify diagnosis and treatment planning (ADHD, personality functioning, clinical disorders).

I support LGBTQIA+ students experiencing anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship challenges, life transitions, and body-image or health concerns, using ACT, DBT, EMDR, and solution-focused therapy. I believe the therapeutic relationship is central, creating a safe, collaborative space to explore new ways of thinking and coping. With over 20 years of experience, I've worked with students facing grief, abuse, postpartum challenges, and complex mental health struggles. My goal is to help you build skills, clarify your goals, and feel empowered to grow. My pronouns are she/her.

I support LGBTQIA+ students dealing with anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, and the stress of chronic illness or life changes. My approach is collaborative and client-centered, so therapy feels like it's built for you. I create a safe and supportive space to help individuals process challenges and coping skills. Together, we'll work toward healing and a more fulfilling life. My pronouns are she/her.

As a therapist, I work closely with young adults as they navigate the challenges of college life (identity exploration, academic pressure, major life shifts etc.) drawing on proven methods suited to this stage of development. My background in university counseling informs a focused, strengths-oriented style that helps students gain direction and build confidence. My specialty areas include navigating life transitions, managing anxiety and depression, understanding self and others, and exploring immigrant/second-generation identities. As a Chinese-American, I provide therapeutic services in both English and Mandarin Chinese. In sessions, I strive to create a cooperative environment where we can engage in meaningful conversations that foster positive growth. In session with me, students might notice that we begin with examining thought patterns, identifying existing strengths, and focusing on concrete steps to support lasting change. Based on each student's values and lived experiences, I draw upon various clinical approaches, such as: - Strength-Based Therapy - Solution-Focused Therapy (SFT) - Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) - Narrative Therapy Pronouns: He/Him

Nikolette believes that successful therapy requires authenticity and depth. She works in a highly relational way and practices on the foundations of Adlerian principles. She is an art therapist who is well versed in CBT, DBT, and Psychodynamic theory. She believes that art can help bring out what’s going on beneath the surface, giving both the therapist and client a window into the unconscious. She also enjoys working on attachment issues and a whole family systems approach. She practices through a trauma informed lens and bases methodologies on the client’s individual needs. Nikolette’s areas of specialty are CPTSD, anxiety, depression, mood disorders, addiction and co-occurring disorder, self esteems issues, and spiritual crisis.

I believe in every person’s worth and capacity for change and connection. This belief guides my work, and I lead each session with unconditional positive regard, leaving judgment at the door. This foundation shapes the work I do and the people I support in therapy. I specialize in working with adults, adolescents, couples, and children navigating hurt and harm across different areas of their lives, including interpersonal relationships and larger social systems. My work includes support for relationship conflict, communication challenges, family dynamics, anxiety, depression, trauma, and identity-related concerns. My approach to therapy is integrative and relational, meaning I draw from a variety of evidence-based practices while tailoring our work to fit your unique needs, goals, and lived experiences. I draw primarily from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. I am also particularly interested in the power of narrative, how we make meaning of our experiences, and how reauthoring those stories can be a source of growth and empowerment. In the therapeutic space we will build together, we work to reflect with intention and honesty. My goal is to help you reconnect with your authentic self in therapy and apply that work in ways that feel real, practical, and lasting outside the therapy room. Along the way, I will challenge and support you in becoming the version of yourself that best aligns with your values, needs, and goals. My work is always grounded in the belief that you are the expert of your own experience. That doesn’t mean you have to navigate your healing journey alone.