Anxiety therapy in Chicago, IL for a more meaningful life.
Therapy for anxiety, eating disorders, and trauma.
Virtual therapy for adults across Illinois.
Somatic and exposure response prevention therapy so that you get to be the one in charge, not your anxiety.
Anxiety therapy that helps you regain control of your life.
You have been battling the same thoughts and beliefs about yourself and the world for so long. You don’t want to feel stuck anymore. You want to create lasting change in your life, but are not sure where to start.
I help people who feel like anxiety, fear, food, or past trauma has taken over their lives, reclaim their freedom, confidence, and sense of self. I will meet you where you are while showing you a path forward.
Difficulty relaxing or feeling safe
Physical symptoms such as racing heart, tension, fatigue, or sleep problems
Avoidance of situations, people, or activities that trigger discomfort
Difficulty concentrating or making decisions
Preoccupation with food, weight, calories, or body image
Feeling a loss of control around eating or compensatory behaviors
Intrusive memories, nightmares, or flashbacks
Difficulty regulating emotions
Feeling that the past continues to control the present
If you resonate with any of these, I can help.
Melissa Martin, LCPC
Anxiety therapist in Chicago, IL
Hi! I’m Melissa.
I help clients explore the thoughts, feelings, and experiences that may be contributing to their challenges. I am especially passionate about helping clients better understand where their anxiety comes from, how it affects their lives, and how to manage it in ways that feel more sustainable and empowering.
Why this work matters to me: I know what it’s like to feel stuck in your own mind, to have anxiety and trauma keep you from your potential, and to fight for a healthy relationship with food and body only to fall back into the same unhealthy patterns. Just because these things are challenges for you, doesn’t mean they always have to be. Recovery and healing is more than possible.
For over ten years, I have worked with adults who are struggling with anxiety, eating disorders, and the effects of trauma. I have helped many overcome these inner battles and find true freedom within themselves. My hope is that you’ll feel supported as we work together to better understand yourself, build new tools, and create meaningful change at a pace that feels right for you.
Therapy Services
Anxiety Therapy
Learn coping skills so that you can live a life that is dictated by you, not your anxiety.
Ruminate less and worry less
Challenge thoughts that are keeping you stuck
Decrease intensity and frequency of anxiety symptoms
Feel more peaceful on a daily basis
Eating Disorder Therapy
Re-define your relationship with food and body to one that includes health, peace, and freedom.
Challenge unhealthy beliefs about food
Build acceptance and appreciation for your body
Stop the all or nothing patterns with food and exercise
Understand and cope with what contributes to binge eating and restricting
Understand how your past is impacting the present and learn how to fully process what is keeping you stuck.
Learn how trauma impacts your brain and body
Gain skills to cope with trauma responses
Feel empowered in your daily decisions and interactions
Define what healing and safety look and feel like to you
Trauma Therapy
Anxiety Therapy in Chicago, IL
Anxiety therapy can help you develop a greater capacity to tolerate distress without allowing anxiety to dictate your choices. Together, we’ll work on understanding anxious patterns, building tolerance for uncomfortable thoughts and feelings, and learning skills to quiet rumination rather than getting caught in cycles of worry and overthinking.
The goal isn’t to eliminate anxiety or make every uncomfortable feeling go away. Instead, therapy can help you respond to anxiety with greater flexibility and confidence, so you can make choices based on what matters to you rather than what anxiety tells you to avoid. Over time, you can build a life that feels fuller, more intentional, and less governed by fear, worry, and the need for certainty.
Eating Disorder Therapy in Chicago, IL
Eating disorder therapy is a supportive space to help you build a healthier, more compassionate relationship with food and your body. Together, we’ll work on redefining the beliefs and patterns that shape how you relate to eating, movement, and body image, while challenging the thoughts that may be influencing behaviors around food and your body.
Therapy will also focus on practical, everyday tools you can use outside of sessions to navigate difficult thoughts, emotions, and situations with greater confidence. The goal is to help you feel more in control, not through restriction or rigid rules, but by developing flexibility, trust, and a sense of freedom in your relationship with food and your body.
Trauma Therapy in Chicago, IL
Trauma therapy provides a safe, supportive space to process experiences from the past and understand how they may still be affecting you in the present. Through a combination of talk therapy and somatic work, we’ll gently explore thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations that may feel stuck or unresolved in the body, helping you develop a greater sense of safety and connection with yourself.
Together, we’ll also identify and build upon your existing strengths, resilience, and resources. The goal is not to erase the past, but to help you regain a sense of power and choice in how you relate to it so that your past experiences no longer have to define your present or your future.
Additional Therapy Services
Couples Therapy
Set aside time to really hear and understand each other with an unbiased professional who can help you get on the same page and increase communication skills.
Somatic Experiencing
Learn how to fully process life experiences by combining physical sensations, thoughts, emotions, and assessment of needs.
Exposure Response Prevention
Increase ability to manage and cope with uncomfortable situations through gradual exposure to discomfort and distress.
