OCD / Anxiety / Family of origin issues / Self compassion / Codependency and relationship issues / Parenting concerns / Navigating divorce / Narcissist abuse recovery / Climate anxiety and eco distress

Self compassion lens / Psychodynamic / Trauma informed / Somatic work / CBT / ERP (Exposure and response prevention therapy) / ACT / Mindfulness / Emotion focused individual therapy (EFIT)

Hi. I’m Marilee Feldman, and I’m a licensed clinical professional counselor and the Founder and Director of Life Counseling Institute.

I’d love to help you in your journey to find peace within yourself and strength, confidence, and joy in your life.

Many of my clients find that they begin to feel more themselves within a few sessions. This may be because I emphasize self-compassion in my therapeutic work. I find that many of my clients are very hard on themselves and begin working immediately to help them find ways to be kinder and gentler toward themselves.

In my work as a therapist, I offer support, validation, and encouragement. I believe greatly in empowerment, helping you feel capable of making change. I want you to better understand yourself, your family dynamics, and your relationships and use this knowledge to develop strategies for improvement. And most importantly, I emphasize the good in you, helping you view compassionately the parts of yourself that you are not proud of.

It has been shown that the most important aspect in effective therapy is the relationship between the therapist and client. I seem to connect well with my clients and can provide you an environment in which you can safely explore all aspects of yourself.

I have several areas of expertise; I am a trauma-informed therapist and have particular expertise in working with serious anxiety disorders such as OCD. I’m also an addictions counselor and work with individuals seeking recovery and their families. I love working with women and moms with relationship concerns and difficulty with boundaries and self-esteem. My greatest passion right now is working with clients with anxiety and grief related to climate change.

My work as a therapist has been informed by my own mental wellness journey as well as the experience of being a caregiver, a widow, and an only parent to two children who I raised on my own. I also have lived experience with substance abuse in my immediate family.

As a therapist I’ve been trying to increase my awareness of how my own background, upbringing, and environment have given me privilege in our culture. I’m interested in humbly learning and growing to work effectively and more frequently with clients of other races and cultures. I’m interested in increasing my work with persons from marginalized and underserved communities, refugees, and individuals impacted by or concerned about climate change.

Welcome, and I look forward to working with you.

Marilee is the Founder and Director of Life Counseling Institute, a licensed clinical professional counselor and certified addictions counselor. She has particular expertise in working with individuals with postpartum issues, addictions, codependency, anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). She is the Chicago/Illinois Regional Coordinator for Climate Psychology Alliance and a member of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, the International OCD Foundation, the Illinois Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Professional Certification Association, and the American Counseling Association.