Jialu Li, BA, MA Candidate,
中文咨询师

Bilingual Psychotherapist
Mandarin (中文普通话)
Pronouns – She/Her/Hers

Many people come to therapy carrying questions they cannot easily name. Sometimes it feels like a quiet unease, other times like patterns that keep returning in relationships, or a sense of being disconnected from oneself. Often, it is within these moments that the work of therapy begins. Here is a space where what lies beneath the surface can be gently noticed, understood, and explored.

I work with adults, young adults, and students who are navigating relationships, identity concerns, life transitions, emotional struggles, or the weight of anxiety and depression. This includes not only relationships with others, but also the ongoing relationship you hold with yourself. I also have a deep commitment to supporting clients in LGBTQIA+ and multicultural communities. As an Asian bilingual therapist in Chicago, offering sessions in Mandarin Chinese and English, I strive to create a space that feels culturally responsive and affirming, where both difference and belonging can be held together.

My approach is rooted in Psychodynamic Therapy, which attends to the inner world and the patterns that shape how we think, feel, and relate. At the same time, I integrate Existential Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), Narrative Therapy, and Solution-Focused Brief Therapy. I see these orientations not as fixed prescriptions but as lenses. Everyone carries unique ways of making sense of their life, and these perspectives allow us to explore both the depth of your story and the practical steps that support meaningful change.

I received my undergraduate degree in Psychology from New York University and I am completing my master’s degree in Counseling at Northwestern University. What draws me to this work is the possibility of meeting clients with openness and respect, and of discovering together how new meaning and connection can take shape. I am here to meet you where you are, and to explore what becomes possible from there.

很多时候，我们会带着一些难以说清的问题走进咨询室。也许是一种若有若无的不安，也许是关系中反复出现的模式，或者是对自己感到疏离。正是在这些时刻，心理咨询可以成为一个停下来、被理解、也能慢慢展开探索的地方。

作为提供中文普通话和英文咨询的双语咨询师，我主要和成年人、年轻人以及学生一起工作，探寻亲密关系、身份认同、情绪、生活转变，以及焦虑和抑郁带来的压力。这不仅是探索与外界的关系，更是去探寻如何与自己共处。我也特别关注 LGBTQIA+ 群体以及有跨文化背景的来访者，希望创造一个被理解与接纳的空间，让每个人都能带着完整的自己走进来。

我本科毕业于纽约大学心理学专业，目前在西北大学完成心理咨询硕士学位。我的取向以心理动力学为核心，结合存在主义疗法、认知行为疗法（CBT）、接纳与承诺疗法（ACT）、内在家庭系统（IFS）、叙事疗法和焦点解决短期疗法。这些方法不是僵硬的技术，而是不同的视角，帮助我们既能深入理解内在的故事，也能找到切实可行的改变方向。

我相信，咨询的基础是人与人之间真诚的关系。在这里，我们可以一起去发现新的意义和可能。期待与你见面