Mary Shesgreen, MS, LMFT Telephone No. ( 630 ) 262-9115

Two Locations

PRACTICE DESCRIPTION: 

I welcome people from diverse ethnic, cultural and economic backgrounds. I work with such problems as depression, anxiety, panic, loneliness, addictions, eating disorders, grief after a divorce or a death, spiritual emptiness, difficulty making decisions, difficulty making friends, shyness, and social isolation. I do a great deal of couples therapy.  Mid-life transitions are a specialty of mine.   I often work with gay and lesbian individuals and couples, as well as with people who are trying to identify, understand or accept their sexual orientation.  I have a sliding fee scale for self-paying, low-income clients.  I frequently conduct women’s therapy groups.

I also work with troubled children age three to eleven, employing the principles and techniques of Theraplay ®.  This is appropriate for withdrawn and fearful children as well as for angry children who throw tantrums.  I work with the parents in tandem, teaching them to use some of these same techniques to develop a closer, more tender, more playful and more enjoyable relationship with their child. 
 

MY APPROACH:

I am especially drawn to helping people move deeply into their interior life.  I like to help people make friends with themselves, forgive themselves for flaws real and imagined, and achieve a peaceful internal world.  Far from encouraging people to be self-indulgent, this work strengthens a person’s ability to relinquish their defensiveness, and to deepen their moral sense.

When I work with couples, I encourage each partner to work on him or herself in this way.  Freedom from defensiveness is enormously difficult to achieve.  No one is able to do it completely.  But it is a goal worth striving for.  I also strive to help the partners develop a sense of humor about themselves, their foibles and their unique dynamics.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Licensed Marriage And Family Therapist in the State of Illinois.   Clinical Member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.  Twenty-four years of experience working with individuals, couples and families. Bachelor’s Degree from Loyola University, Master’s Degree from Northeastern Illinois State University, and Master’s Degree from Northern Illinois University.

MY SKILLS:

I have studied many therapeutic modalities and have become skilled in EMDR, TFT,
Theraplay ®, hypnosis, guided imagery, parts work, and progressive relaxation.