You’re ready to address the root cause of your suffering. You’re seeking real change.
And you’re also anxious about finding a therapist that will understand you.
I get it. It’s hard to know where to begin.
You want to live a life free from depression, but it’s hard to even imagine that possibility. Grief has overcome you and you want to move forward. Traumas from the past continue to haunt you. Past experiences of emotional neglect have made it hard for you to understand and express your feelings.
Together, we will ask, What’s the change you want in your life?
Sara Todd, LCSW
My Background
I deeply understand the power of therapy because I’ve experienced it firsthand. I wouldn’t ask of you something I myself haven’t done. I am deeply humbled by the transformative potential of the therapy process and love being in this work.
I obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from the University of Kentucky (2002) and a Master’s in Social Work from the University of Louisville (2009). After graduate school, I participated in the fellowship programs with the Chicago Psychoanalytic Institute (2010-2011) and the Chicago Center for Psychoanalysis (2011-2013). I obtained a Certificate in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy from the Chicago Center for Psychoanalysis in 2015, which required two years of post-graduate advanced clinical training. I have spent hundreds of hours in clinical supervision and training within the field of psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic psychotherapy. I currently meet weekly with a psychoanalyst and monthly with a psychoanalytic case consultation group to discuss my clinical work. I have worked in various mental health settings since entering graduate school in 2006, which have included: psychiatric in-patient units, long-term residential substance use treatment, short-term crisis stabilization, psychiatric research, community mental health agencies, and integrative primary care.
I’ve been practicing meditation since 2002 when I was drawn to Buddhist teachings on kindness and compassion. I now identify as Buddhist and currently practice within both Tibetan and Zen traditions. I have a daily meditation practice and have participated in numerous week-long group and solo retreats over the past 20 years. My meditation practice grounds me in my work as a therapist so that I can show up in the most present way for you.
In my personal life, I’ve engaged in social justice and community organizing in various capacities and roles since I was a young adult. This has included the personal work of interrogating how whiteness shows up in my life and recovering my ancestral story. I consider my work as a therapist as inextricably linked to creating enlightened society.
