My name is Julia, and after receiving my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Spanish from Kalamazoo College, I attended Northwestern University to earn my Master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy. I specialized in Marriage and Family Therapy because of its systemic approach to healing. I believe our struggles are shaped by the complex contexts we live in, and that meaningful change begins when we address those layers in all of their unique complexities. A truly systemic approach means attending to all parts of ourselves—emotional, physical, relational, and beyond—to create lasting change. I’ve been deeply influenced by my work in community agencies, where I provided support to low-income families and survivors of sexual and domestic abuse. My work with Spanish-speaking families in community health deepened my desire to work towards clinical fluency. While I am not a native or fully fluent Spanish speaker, I am comfortable supporting bilingual individuals and families.

I see therapy as a collaborative process that should feel like a human to human interaction. I aim to create a warm environment where you feel safe to be honest and can explore what matters most to you, knowing that I’m on your team. We’ll work together to identify your goals, and I’ll be there to support and challenge you in ways that feel both compassionate and constructive. My training in Integrative Systemic Therapy (IST) gives me a flexible, client-centered framework to adapt my approach based on what’s most helpful for you. In practice, my IST approach feels like finding the path of least resistance to your goals, honoring your pace and priorities. There’s no one-size-fits-all model in therapy, so I draw from a variety of therapeutic approaches and theories, primarily Internal Family Systems (IFS), attachment theory, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), and somatic practices, all within a trauma-informed lens. My belief in the mind-body connection grounds my work in nervous system science, helping me support your capacity for regulation and resilience. Our bodies reflect our emotional worlds, and we can’t heal one without tending to the other.

In my work with couples and relational systems, I have experience with infidelity and sexual issues, cultural differences and misattunement, as well as managing high, cyclical conflict. Healthy relationships look many different ways, and I encourage my clients to explore their relational needs and desires with curiosity and openness. I am especially passionate about working with highly sensitive and neurodivergent individuals, who face unique challenges navigating a world that is increasingly fast paced and overstimulating. My areas of interest include complex trauma, anxiety, perfectionism, and LGBTQ+ experiences. Above all, I bring a whole body and inclusive lens to everything I do, honoring the complexity of each person’s story and the strength it takes to show up and do this work. My hope is that each of my clients comes to see that the insight and strength they’re searching for already lives within them—and that sometimes, we just need help clearing the blocks in our path to move forward with more clarity and peace.

Outside the therapy room, you can often find me singing and playing piano or curled up with a mystery novel and my cat. I feel most like myself when I’m out among the trees, and I’m always on the lookout for new green spaces to explore around Chicago!