ONLINE THERAPY IN CHICAGO & ACROSS ILLINOIS
Talk to Someone Who Actually Gets It.
Because you don't have to be the “strong one” here.
Warm, culturally affirming therapy for adults, teens, and couples. Trauma-informed care for anxiety, burnout, postpartum, identity, and the relationships that ask a lot of you.
In-network with BCBS PPO Illinois, Blue Choice PPO & Aetna PPO. We verify your benefits before your first session so you have a clearer understanding of your expected costs.
MAYBE YOU’RE HERE BECAUSE…
You’ve been the strong one for so long… and it’s finally catching up to you.
You’re lying in bed, wide awake… replaying conversations from hours ago, wondering if you said the wrong thing
You’re sitting in your car for a few extra minutes… just trying to figure out how to respond to one more text, one more ask, one more responsibility.
You’re looking at your inbox or today’s to-do list… already feeling ten steps behind before your feet even touch the floor.
You’re smiling through conversations and holding it together for everyone else… while secretly wondering why you feel so profoundly disconnected from yourself.
You’re the one people rely on. The one who figures it out. The one who keeps going. The one who remembers, helps, fixes, checks in, and keeps showing up, even when you’re running on empty.
From the outside, people call you successful, capable, so strong. Inside, you replay conversations, worry about disappointing people, and wonder why relaxing feels almost impossible.
Maybe you’ve told yourself you’ll feel better when work slows down.
When the kids need less.
When the relationship gets better.
When you finally catch up.
But somehow, there’s always something else.
Nothing is wrong with you
Let’s be real… you've been carrying a lot for a long time. So, of course it feels like this.
Maybe you’ve been thinking about therapy for weeks or months.
Maybe you’ve opened websites like this before and closed them because you told yourself, “I can probably handle this.” You might not even know exactly what you need right now, but you know something has to give.
And if you’re here, you’re in the right place.
You don’t have to wait until you are completely broken to reach for support. You don’t have to figure it out on your own anymore.
That's exactly why we created Mindful Healing Counseling. Our psychologist-led team provides compassionate, evidence-based online therapy for adults, teens, women, and couples throughout Chicago and Illinois.
Imagine a Different Way of Moving Through the World:
Imagine waking up without a wave of dread or a racing mind.
Imagine your shoulders naturally dropping because your body finally feels safe enough to unbrace.
Imagine setting a firm boundary without carrying the lingering guilt.
Imagine stepping out of the constant mental overload of managing everyone else's needs, and finally having a dedicated space that is just for you.
Imagine dropping the exhausting pressure to perform, overachieve, or mask who you are just to be accepted.
Imagine trusting your choices and deeply knowing you are enough, exactly as you are.
Imagine being fully present with the people you love instead of constantly managing, anticipating, or worrying about what's next.
You don’t have to keep doing this on your own.
Support for What You’re Carrying
Because sometimes it isn’t just one thing.
Our Illinois therapists support adults, teens, young adults, couples, and families navigating anxiety, overthinking, trauma, burnout, ADHD, pregnancy and postpartum concerns, difficult relationships, identity, and major life transitions.
Sometimes it’s one of these things.
Sometimes it’s five of them happening at once.
We can start wherever you are.
We match you. You never have to guess.
Your to do list is already a mile long, so we made this part simple.
01
SHARE YOUR STORY
Click the match button and fill out our quick form. No perfect words required. Just let us know a little about what you’re looking for.
02
GET MATCHED
We personally match you with a therapist whose experience, personality, and approach fit your goals and needs.
03
BEGIN FROM
Meet securely with your therapist online from a private, comfortable space anywhere in Illinois. You don’t need to know exactly what to say. You just need to show up.
We can start there.
Therapy That Sees the Whole You
You are more than a list of symptoms and your story matters.
Your culture, identity, relationships, family, community, experiences, and the world you move through can all shape your mental health.
Our therapists provide culturally responsive, identity-affirming care for:
Women
Moms and parents
Black women
BIPOC communities
First-generation adults and professionals
LGBTQIA+, transgender, nonbinary, and gender-diverse clients
ADHD, autistic, AuDHD, and neurodivergent clients
College students and young adults
Teens
Couples and families
You shouldn’t have to spend your therapy hour explaining why your culture matters, defending your identity, or teaching your therapist the basics of your lived experience.
You get to bring your whole self here, and be welcomed and celebrated, exactly as you are.
Why Clients Choose Mindful Healing Counseling
We do therapy differently.
Because therapy should never feel like another place where you have to perform.
You won't just be heard. You'll be understood. And you'll leave sessions with a clear, supported way forward.
Our therapists don't simply nod and ask, "How does that make you feel?" We actively help you understand why you're stuck, teach practical tools that fit your real life, gently challenge old patterns, and celebrate every single step forward.
Clients often tell us our specialized approach to online therapy feels entirely different because they leave each session feeling lighter, clearer, and more hopeful than when they arrived.
Therapy That Actually Feels Different
A space where you can finally stop surviving and start feeling like yourself again.
Our therapists specialize in culturally affirming care for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and first-generation individuals.
A Space Where All of You is Welcome
Finally, a space where you don’t have to translate your life or perform your strength. Here, you can show up as your full, unedited self, without apology.
Real Relief, Not Just Talk
Move beyond just venting. We combine trauma-informed, evidence-based tools with a deep understanding of the nervous system to help you find lasting relief and self-trust.
Flexible, Online Therapy
Secure, virtual therapy across Chicago, Palos Heights, and all of Illinois with care that fits your life, with no commute or waiting rooms.
What We'll Actually Help You Do
We partner with you to create practical, felt change outside of session.
Drawing from evidence-based approaches—including CBT, DBT, ACT, mindfulness, attachment-based therapy, and nervous system-informed care—we tailor therapy to your experiences, goals, and needs.
Together, we will help you:
Understand why your mind feels stuck in constant survival mode.
Calm the constant overthinking instead of exhausting yourself trying to fight it.
Learn practical tools you can use between sessions and in the moments you need them most.
Heal painful experiences and trauma that still affect your relationships today.
Feel safer in your own body, so you can begin understanding the stress responses that keep you tense, shut down, overwhelmed, or constantly on alert.
Set healthy boundaries with confidence and peace of mind.
Feel less anxious in your body—not just more informed about why the anxiety is there.
Stop automatically putting everyone else’s needs ahead of your own.
Build relationships that feel safer, deeper, and more connected.
Feel more like yourself again. Not the version everyone needs you to be. You.
You Belong Here.
If you’re looking for a trauma-informed therapist in Chicago or culturally responsive therapy anywhere in Illinois, you have found your home. Your experiences will be approached with curiosity, respect, and care, not treated as something you need to defend or explain away.
Meet the Therapists Who Get It
Different therapists. Different strengths. One shared belief: you deserve to feel genuinely seen and understood.
Finding the right therapist matters.
Every therapist on our team is carefully chosen for both deep clinical expertise and genuine human compassion.
You deserve a space where you can finally let your guard down. A place where you don’t have to translate your life, edit your words, or explain the baseline of who you are. Our psychologist-led team is made up of real, compassionate human beings who combine deep clinical expertise with genuine warmth.
We’re here to give you a safe, supportive place to catch your breath, stop just getting through the day, and finally feel like yourself again.
-

Briana Booker, LSW
For the woman whose mind never seems to turn off—and who is tired of repeating the same patterns.
Briana supports women, young adults, and couples navigating anxiety, overthinking, burnout, relationship patterns, communication challenges, LGBTQIA+ experiences, and neurodivergence.
-

Samreen Ahmed, LSW
For those whose minds and bodies have been carrying stress for far too long.
Samreen provides culturally responsive, trauma-informed support for anxiety, trauma, grief, nervous system stress, life transitions, and the intersection of culture, faith, family, and identity. She has a particular understanding of South Asian, Muslim, BIPOC, and first-generation experiences.
-

Therin Slayton, PsyD
For the outliers, deep thinkers, creatives, and people who are tired of masking who they are.
Therin provides LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent-affirming care for transgender, nonbinary, gender-diverse, ADHD, autistic, AuDHD, disabled, and neurodivergent adults navigating burnout, masking, anxiety, identity, relationships, and self-discovery.
-

Summer Stewart, PsyD
For the woman who has been “the strong one” for far too long.
Summer works especially well with Black and Brown women, high-achieving professionals, and young adults navigating anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, relationships, trauma, and the pressure to hold everything together.
-

Fabiola Felix, LSW
For the first-gen woman who is tired of being “the reliable one” at the expense of herself.
Fabiola supports first-generation and Latinx clients navigating anxiety, overthinking, cultural and family expectations, boundaries, burnout, grief, identity, and difficult life transitions.
-

Aretha Steele, PsyD
Founder & Clinical Director
Dr. Steele founded Mindful Healing Counseling around a simple belief: people heal best when they feel genuinely seen, understood, and supported for who they are.
While Dr. Steele is not currently accepting new clients, she provides clinical leadership and guidance to the Mindful Healing Counseling team.
What Therapy Actually Feels Like Here
You don't have to know exactly what to say.
You don't have to arrive with your thoughts neatly organized or worry about finding the "right" words. Some days you'll have a lot to say; some days you won't know where to begin. Both are completely okay. We'll help you untangle what's been feeling overwhelming and move at a pace that feels right for you.
You'll feel supported—and gently challenged.
Therapy with us isn't about someone silently nodding while you carry everything by yourself. Some sessions will bring immense relief, some will help you connect dots you've never noticed before, and sometimes we'll laugh or celebrate wins that once felt impossible. Sometimes we'll just sit together with something painful and gently challenge old patterns that are no longer serving you. Through it all, you'll have someone walking right alongside you.
Finding relief that stays with you throughout the week.
The goal isn't simply to feel better for fifty minutes; it's to help you feel different throughout the rest of your week. Little by little, you'll begin noticing yourself responding differently to stress, speaking to yourself with more compassion, setting boundaries with less guilt, and feeling calmer in situations that once overwhelmed you.
There are no perfect clients, no perfect stories, and no perfect healing journeys. Just real people carrying real things. We'll meet you exactly where you are.
A Space Built With You in Mind
“Therapy shouldn’t just help you get through it. It should help you actually feel better—deeply, honestly, and in a way that lasts.”
—Dr. Aretha Steele, Founder & Licensed Clinical Psychologist
Online Counseling Across Chicago and All of Illinois
Secure virtual sessions. From your couch, your car, or wherever you can breathe for an hour.
Mindful Healing Counseling was founded by a Black woman psychologist who intimately understands the weight of being "the only one" in the room. Our practice provides culturally responsive, trauma-informed online therapy designed to make specialized care easier to access, without adding a commute or waiting room to your day.
Our therapists provide secure online therapy to clients in Chicago, Palos Heights, New Lenox, surrounding suburbs, and communities throughout Illinois. Our secure virtual platform allows us to serve adults, teens, couples, women, moms, professionals, and neurodivergent adults across the entire state.
Commonly Serving Neighborhoods & Suburbs Including:
Lincoln Park • Lakeview • Logan Square • Wicker Park • Beverly • Hyde Park • West Loop • Oak Park • Evanston • Tinley Park • Orland Park • Naperville • New Lenox • Palos Heights
Insurance & Fees
Quality care that’s within reach.
We believe specialized therapy should be accessible. Before your very first appointment, our team verifies your specific benefits so you know exactly what your co-pay or deductible will be. No financial surprises.
Mindful Healing Counseling is in-network with the following PPO plans:
Not sure about your coverage? We are happy to help you check your benefits before your first session so there are no financial surprises.
(Please note: We are unable to accept Medicaid or Medicare at this time.)
Common Questions About Beginning Therapy
-
If your usual ways of coping aren't bringing you relief anymore, or if you feel like you are constantly just trying to survive the day rather than actually living it, therapy can help.
You don't have to wait for a major crisis or a complete burnout to deserve support. If you are exhausted from holding everything together by yourself, that is more than enough reason to reach out.
-
It absolutely can.
Many of our clients have spent years functioning at a very high level while carrying deep anxiety, heavy pressure, or old family hurts underneath. Because we look at how stress is held in your body and your nervous system, instead of just talking about it in circles, we can help you shift long-standing patterns that willpower alone hasn’t been able to change.
-
Therapy works best when you feel a genuine connection with your therapist. During your first few sessions, notice how it feels to talk with them: Do you feel safe? Do you feel truly heard and unjudged? We put a lot of heart into our matching process, but if it ever feels like it’s not the right fit, you won't hurt our feelings. We honor that completely and will gently, seamlessly help you connect with another therapist on our team who clicks better with you.
-
We absolutely do.
We believe you should never have to exhaust yourself translating your background, explaining your culture, or defending your identity to your therapist. Mindful Healing Counseling was intentionally founded by a Black woman psychologist to be a space where your lived experience is fully honored, not treated as a footnote.
Our team specializes in providing deeply compassionate, identity-affirming care for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, first-generation professionals, and neurodivergent adults. You are welcome to show up exactly as your full, unedited self, without having to perform or apologize for who you are.
-
That is completely normal, and you are entirely welcome here just as you are.
You never need a script, a plan, or an agenda to show up. Our therapists are right there with you, helping to guide the conversation, ask gentle questions, and untangle the thoughts that feel messy. And if you cry? This is the one place where you don't have to stay strong. Crying is just your body finally letting go of the weight.
-
It’s incredibly common to minimize your own pain by telling yourself “others have it worse.” But if something is stealing your peace, disrupting your sleep, affecting your mood, or straining your relationships, it is absolutely important enough. You don't have to earn the right to feel well, and you don't have to wait until things get worse before you get help.
Our goal is to help you feel comfortable, understood, and supported from the very beginning.
-
Not all therapy is the same, and finding the right approach matters. If you’ve tried traditional talk therapy in the past that felt like just venting about your week without giving you real change, it makes complete sense that you feel skeptical. We do therapy differently by working with your mind and your body together, targeting the root of stress in your nervous system so you can find real, lasting relief.
-
Yes, online therapy is incredibly effective, and it has become the preferred choice for busy adults. It offers the exact same depth of clinical care as an in-person session, but with the added relief of staying in your own safe, comfortable space, without adding a stressful commute or a public waiting room to your day.
-
Yes. Because we are a psychologist-led team, we have clinicians with deep, varied specialties rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. When you connect with us, we look at the specific challenges you are navigating and pair you with a provider who truly understands and specializes in that exact area.
-
We don't leave your care up to automated computer algorithms. When you fill out our brief intake form, our leadership team personally reviews what you're experiencing, your preferences, your goals, and your lived identity. We use our real human insight to match you with the therapist on our team best suited to walk alongside you.
-
Most clients begin with weekly sessions. This helps us build a strong relationship, build momentum, and practice new tools together. How long you stay in therapy is entirely up to your unique goals and needs. Some people find the focus and relief they need in a few months, while others value therapy as a consistent, ongoing space for their personal growth and self-care.
-
We believe specialized care should be accessible and transparent. We are proudly in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO, Blue Choice PPO, and Aetna PPO. Before your very first appointment, our team will verify your specific benefits for you so you know exactly what your co-pay or deductible responsibility will be with no financial surprises.
Please note that we are unable to accept Medicaid or Medicare at this time.
Ready to finally set that weight down?
You’ve carried this by yourself for long enough.
It’s time for someone to be there for you.
You deserve a life that feels lighter, calmer, and more fully your own.
Prefer to ask a few questions first? Schedule a free, no-pressure 15-minute consultation.