ABOUT NATHANIEL
I began my work with families in 1998 as an adolescent crisis counselor at Youth Outreach Services in Chicago. The work gave me a deeper understanding of the struggles that individuals and families in challenging situations go through each day. The work was difficult, and required patience but allowed me to grasp the resiliency of families despite adverse circumstances. Through this, I further developed my therapeutic perspective: building on the strengths of the person within the family system for resiliency and health.
I received my master’s degree at Loyola University School of Social Work, concentrating on clinical work and honing my skills in various and eclectic treatment modalities. I spent time interning clinically at the Josselyn Center in Northfield and was there for two years working with clients in long-term therapy. The population I worked with included children, families, and adults, and it was here that I further developed my skills with a wide range of issues including but not limited to mood disorders (specifically bi-polar and depression), anxiety, Spectrum Disorders, grief and loss, and divorce. I was mentored by and worked alongside some of the foremost social workers, psychologists, and psychiatrists on the North Shore.
After the Josselyn Center, I moved on to Mercy Home for Boys and Girls to broaden my repertoire of treatment modalities and therapy experiences. With Mercy I provided milieu therapy for the first two years, then managed a residential program focusing on teaching independent living and coping skills. The last four years I was the Director of the Admissions department focusing on assessment and family support. At Mercy, I saw individuals and families dealing with loss and abandonment, posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anger, and anxiety. Working in a program in which the children live, I had the unique opportunity to work with them on issues they face personally, within the family system, at school, in the workplace, and socially.
Most recently I was a social worker with The Northshore Adolescent Dayschool. I worked with teens who struggled with issues ranging from severe anxiety, and depression, to psychosis.
I began my private practice in Glenview in 2004. Since then my practice has grown and I work with children, adults, couples, and families who come to me for help with a wide range of issues and situations. I work with families coping with divorce, sibling issues, school problems, social/relational concerns, depression, trauma, and bi-polar disorder.