Zaine Lee

Hello, and welcome! If you are holding it together on the outside while stress, anxiety, or low mood wear you down on the inside, you are not failing. You are carrying a lot, and you deserve support without judgment.

I'm Zaine Lee, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 13 years of experience in behavioral healthcare, mental health services, and clinical leadership. I earned my Master of Social Work from Loyola University Chicago, specializing in mental health, and a Master of Health Services Administration from National Louis University. My background includes clinical assessment, treatment planning, and crisis intervention, so I am comfortable with complex situations and big life transitions.

I work with depression, anxiety, stress, ADHD, and alcohol or substance use, and with the family and relationship strain that often comes with them. I also support women through postpartum and maternal mental health, and I work with trauma and PTSD, grief and loss, and the pressure of big life transitions. I see children, teens, adults, and older adults online across Illinois. My style is warm, empowering, and open-minded. Wherever you are right now, my goal is to meet you there and help you move forward with more confidence and resilience.

I believe every person has real strengths and the capacity for meaningful change. My job is to help you see them, and to make therapy a partnership built on trust, respect, and honest conversation.

I start by listening. Together we name what is bringing you in, set realistic goals, and build practical strategies you can use between sessions. I draw on solution-focused work to get you moving on what matters most right now, CBT to untangle thoughts that keep you stuck, and motivational interviewing for the times when change feels like two steps forward and one back. When it fits, we look underneath at patterns with psychodynamic and family-based approaches. Everything I do is person-centered, trauma-informed, and strengths-based.

My focus includes anxiety, depression, stress, emotional regulation, relationship challenges, and life transitions. The goal is not only to get you through this week, but to leave you with the confidence, insight, and tools to build lasting change.

Your first session is a chance to get acquainted, not an interview. I know starting therapy can feel overwhelming, especially when talking about hard experiences, so my priority is a warm, confidential, nonjudgmental space where you feel heard and comfortable being yourself.

We will talk about what brought you in, what you are dealing with, and what you hope will be different. I will ask about your strengths and the people who support you. We will go over confidentiality and any questions about how therapy works, then begin sketching a few realistic goals tailored to you, whether that is healthier coping strategies, steadier emotions, or support through a big change.

You will not be expected to share everything in the first meeting. Therapy moves at a pace that respects your comfort and boundaries. My goal is for you to leave feeling understood, supported, and clear on the next step.