Teresa Cortas, LCSW

Teresa Cortas is a licensed clinical social worker with 25 years of experience helping people manage stress, anxiety, depression, and major life changes. She focuses on practical steps people can use day to day. Her approach aims to reduce overwhelm and restore a clearer sense of direction.

She works with clients who are navigating relationship strain, parenting challenges, grief, career shifts, and identity questions including LGBT concerns. Teresa pays attention to feelings of emptiness, guilt, and shame and helps clients name those patterns so they can change them.

Teresa uses a combination of cognitive behavioral ideas and a client-centered way of listening. She helps people spot unhelpful thoughts, try new behaviors, and set realistic goals. Motivational interviewing tools are used when clients want to boost readiness for change and build momentum.

Sessions tend to be collaborative and paced to each person. Teresa aims to make sessions clear and straightforward, with concrete strategies to practice between meetings. She also works with trauma-focused methods when past events are part of what’s causing pain.

Based in Illinois, Teresa brings a calm, affirming presence and a practical focus to therapy. People who feel stuck or who need support through transitions often find the mix of listening and skill-building useful. Her work centers on helping clients rediscover purpose and build manageable coping skills.

Online approaches that combine listening and skill building

Teresa uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help people notice unhelpful thinking patterns and try new behaviors that reduce anxiety and low mood. CBT focuses on specific skills and short-term experiments people can practice between sessions.

She also works in a client-centered way, offering accepting, attentive listening that helps clients feel heard and decide what matters most. Motivational interviewing is used when someone wants help building motivation and setting achievable goals for change.

Finding the right mix of approaches is a collaborative process. Teresa will talk with each person about their goals and preferences and adapt methods as progress unfolds. She sees therapy as a team effort where the client’s priorities guide the plan.

Online sessions are offered by video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to make therapy flexible and accessible. Video is useful when visual cues help the work, phone can be easier when bandwidth is limited, and messaging or chat suits shorter check-ins or ongoing support between longer meetings. These options make it easier to fit therapy into busy schedules and to keep momentum during life transitions.