Grief counselors and therapists in Homewood, IL

My nursing career began in 2010 when I first became a Registered Nurse. In 2017 I graduated from Maryville University in St. Louis, MO with my master’s degree in nursing and became a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP-C) licensed in Illinois. I have been blessed to work in many facets of healthcare since and has also become a board-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP-BC). With a strong foundation in both primary care and mental health, my approach aligns overall wellness and hormone optimization with physical, mental, and lifestyle well-being.

With more than 15 years of experience in the mental health field, I am committed to helping individuals, couples, and families navigate life’s challenges with greater understanding, confidence, and hope. My approach to therapy is grounded in compassion, collaboration, and the belief that meaningful change is possible for everyone.

My primary goal is to walk alongside you throughout your therapeutic journey—creating a space where you feel heard, respected, validated, and understood, while also receiving practical tools and strategies to help you create meaningful change in your life. I believe therapy should provide both a place to process your experiences and a pathway toward growth, healing, and improved well-being.

I am a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor who has been working with a variety of clients for 12 years. I believe healing happens through connection, time, and compassion. I’m committed to helping people understand their stories, navigate difficult emotions, and build healthier patterns that support the life they want to live.

I offer a warm, non‐judgmental space where you can explore what’s weighing on you at your own pace. My approach blends solution‐focused practices with a deeply human perspective—honoring your strengths, your resilience, and the unique experiences that shaped you. Whether you’re working through anxiety, trauma, relationship challenges, or seeking personal growth, I’m here to walk alongside you with honesty, empathy, and respect.

Sometimes you can look like you're holding everything together while quietly feeling anxious, overwhelmed, or exhausted. You may spend so much energy taking care of work, family, or everyone around you that there's very little left for yourself. If that sounds familiar, you're not alone.

I work with adults navigating anxiety, ADHD, panic, trauma, relationship challenges, and major life transitions. My goal is to provide a warm, supportive space where you can slow down, better understand what's contributing to your stress, and build practical tools that help you feel calmer, more confident, and more connected to yourself.

My passion for being a therapist comes from a life-long dream I had of helping people transition from a difficult time in their life to a life that can become full of joy again. I work with clients who are experiencing the loss of a loved one or the loss of a job, dreams, divorce and other challenges. I also work with women who have postpartum depression, a traumatic pregnancy or birth and recovery. I also work with clients who are suffering from anxiety and depression that can stop us from living the best life we can. Life is hard, can give you challenges, questions the meaning of life, can make you angry, bitter and hard to get through each day.

I know what you are going through, what you are feeling and what you are ignoring. I write about this from personal experience from the many losses I have had in my life—my daughter, siblings, parents and many friends. Grieving takes time and, in the beginning, we’re consumed with the details: wakes, funerals, memorial services. This can feel like it’s giving us a purpose, keeping busy, honoring our loved one. But what happens when the service is over? Friends and family have gone home, they’re living their lives and we’re left with our memories and our grief. A question I often hear is how can I begin my life without my loved one?

I've spent more than 30 years working at the intersection of trauma, behavioral health, substance use, and the legal system — the places where people's lives get the most complicated. My background includes community mental health, child welfare, residential treatment, and forensic social work throughout the Chicago area. I've worked with courts, directed multi-site programs, and served populations that most therapists don't encounter. Now I bring all of that experience into one-on-one telehealth sessions for adults across Illinois.I work best with people who have been through real complexity: trauma that runs deep, co-occurring mental health and substance use challenges, grief that doesn't follow a timeline, life disrupted by legal system involvement, or histories that are hard to explain to someone who hasn't seen it before. If you've worked with other therapists who didn't quite get it — I understand, and I'm not starting from scratch with you. I'm also currently completing my Doctorate of Social Work at the University of New England, which reflects my commitment to staying at the leading edge of clinical practice. My work is grounded in evidence-based approaches — CBT, Trauma-Focused CBT, Motivational Interviewing, Strength-Based Therapy — applied with warmth, directness, and 30 years of real-world experience behind them.

My passion is helping others with their self-discovery. I do this by providing a safe and comfortable environment where you can be heard without worrying about judgment. I have worked with diverse populations from ages 12 and older, helping them resolve challenges in their everyday life.

I help children, adolescents, and adults navigate anxiety, depression, trauma, OCD, bipolar disorder, grief, and life’s challenges so they can feel more confident, resilient, and connected to themselves. If you’ve spent years taking care of everyone else and feel like you’ve lost yourself along the way, therapy can help you reconnect with your needs, build healthy coping skills, and move toward the life you want.

I am a social worker and grief counselor, with over 6 years experience working with bereaved clients. I am also a director of mental health education for a grief focused non-profit, creating programs that educate on grief & loss awareness. While grief is my main focus, I hold a special place in my heart for all life transitions, including job/career changes, spiritual adjustments/abuse, and relationship losses.

I have provided counseling services for over 20 years, helping clients work through trauma, PTSD, anxiety, panic, stress, family challenges, and women’s issues. I specialize in supporting people who feel stuck in painful memories, overwhelmed by anxiety, or disconnected from themselves after difficult life experiences. My approach is compassionate, non-judgmental, and deeply respectful of each person’s story. I believe healing often involves more than traditional talk therapy, which is why I incorporate approaches that support the mind, body, and spirit. I am an EMDRIA Certified Therapist and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, and I use EMDR, somatic therapy, attachment-based therapy, interpersonal therapy, and other trauma-informed approaches to help clients move toward relief and healing. When we work together, you can expect a caring space where you are accepted as you are and supported at a pace that feels safe.