Couples Counseling Therapists in Palatine, IL

Whether you’re feeling overwhelmed with life’s challenges or simply want to work on achieving better balance in your life, we can help guide you. Perhaps you’ve been trying to manage depression, anxiety, substance abuse issues, trauma effects on your own, and feel that it is all a bit too much. At times, we can be our own worst critics, and struggle to manage our self-doubt. We realize that deciding to seek out a therapist can be a difficult task, and you want someone who will be there for you, and help you get to where you want to be in your life without judgment.

Life can be difficult to manage, whether you are going through a temporary rough patch in your life or you struggle with anxiety or depression. Emotions are a natural occurrence in our everyday life. However, some of us have more trouble dealing with these emotions, which, at times, can prove to be unbearable for some.

Cherry Hill Counseling is one of the longest-standing counseling practices in the Northwestern suburbs of Chicago. Cherry Hill has seven locations including: Lake Zurich, Vernon Hills, McHenry, Deer Park, Chicago, Grayslake, and Wheaton. Our counseling services include: individual therapy, family therapy, counseling for children and adolescents, marital and premarital therapy, group therapy, and psychological testing.

Via video and phone sessions, my clients seek my assistance because they feel trapped and stuck in life with painful loss, difficult change, relationship turbulence, self-doubt, and negative patterns that dominate, overwhelm, and hinder them. Whether first-timers or having been in counseling before, my clients enter into a collaborative journey with me. In this safe, caring, and healing process, they find stronger identity, esteem, and direction, breakthroughs to new positive patterns, greater personal and relationship wholeness, and renewed faith, hope, love, and wellness.

Do you ever feel like there's a part of you that wants to move forward and another part that just feels stuck in the past? My ideal client(s) are looking for a therapist who is practical, warm, funny and authentic. I have over 20 years experience helping people get "unstuck" by holding a safe space, connecting with their body, and acting as a hope merchant. I also have sweet, fuzzy therapy partner, Charlie the Goldendoodle, who facilitates.

China Oughton is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She completed her Masters of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy at The Family Institute at Northwestern University. She acquired a diverse range of clinical experience through training at The Family Institute's Bette D. Harris Family and Child Clinic and the Parents In Charge (PIC) Clinic located in Chicago, IL. She has experience in crisis and family intervention within therapeutic day school settings and is a trauma-informed and EMDR trained therapist. She has completed trainings and is experienced with reunification and court-ordered family therapy.

It takes courage and curiosity to begin the therapy process and I admire those who are able to do so. I believe that the psychotherapy process is greatly influenced by the therapeutic relationship. I work to collaboratively create a therapeutic relationship based on mutual respect, trust, and understanding.

I believe we all have the innate ability to cope and adapt and I also recognize that these coping behaviors and adaptations can sometimes stop serving us in the way they once did. My aim is to better understand your unique context to help you deepen your self-awareness, develop self-acceptance and discover, together, your path toward the outcomes you are seeking. I believe each person’s story is sacred and that lasting change happens within the context of relationship. I seek to create a person-centered environment where people feel comfortable to heal or grow at their pace in the way that fits their specific needs.