Health Behavior Change Counseling in Chicago
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What Our Clients Are Saying
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During our first session Hannah was proactive in creating a plan of action to properly diagnose me and address my concerns. Detailed. Office is beautiful. Love the decor, relaxing ambiance and free tea.
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She was very kind and thorough during intake and the entire office looks like something out of a lifestyle magazine.
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The office is lovely and welcoming, the in-take paperwork helped me prepare for what I wanted to talk about and gave me a starting point.
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Dr. Yang is warm and empathic, and made me feel comfortable from the very beginning.
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Emma has been very supportive through major life changes for me. Her sweet and gentle nature made it easy for me to feel safe to open up to her. I am very grateful for her support and kindness.
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It was my first visit and she made me feel so safe. I opened up right away!
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Meet Our Chicago Health Behavior Change Therapists
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Olivia Palumbo, MA
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![Therapist for kids with long straight brown hair wearing a light purple collared shirt and a thin gold necklace.]()
Nishma Patel, LCPC
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![Miami wellness therapist with long brown hair smiling, wearing a black top and layered gold necklaces, against a white background.]()
Zulexis Alcaide, Psy.D.
Want to make changes so you feel your best physically and mentally?
Maybe you are struggling with a chronic illness or condition, and are seeking relief.
Or perhaps you know that you feel better when you exercise regularly, but have a hard time sticking with it.
You might be exploring different diets or nutrition plans to see what works best for you
Or you might already know what foods to eat and what foods to avoid, but are having trouble implementing this knowledge in your day-to-day.
You might simply be wanting to explore how your day to day health choices impact your mental health.
There are endless opportunities available to improve your health, but how do you know which ones are best for you? We can help you navigate the health and wellness landscape, and collaborate with you in your decision making process so it’s not so overwhelming. We are also experts at behavior change, so we can help you successfully implement any changes that you’d like to make to improve your health.
Our Expertise in Health Behavior Change
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Food & Nutrition Behavior Change
You may have information from a doctor or test results which reveal what foods you should eat and which to avoid, but it can be difficult to implement that information.
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Movement & Exercise Behavior Change
Perhaps you set a goal to go to yoga, or take a certain number of steps each day, but in reality, it’s difficult to achieve.
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Health & Wellness Decision Making
Which healthcare provider has the “right” advice for me? Where should I go next to get information on my health? Common questions we can help you navigate.
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Improving Chronic Conditions
Often small changes over time can play a big role in lessening the effect of chronic conditions in your life. Also, we know how to work with emotional underpinnings of conditions which may help you find relief in a new way.
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Stress Management
Finding ways to reduce and cope with stress is one of the pillars of good physical health.
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Sleep Improvement
Sleep is another super important pillar of good health, and we have tools to help you improve your sleep.
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Tobacco Cessation
If smoking or using tobacco is one of the things impeding your optimal health, we are experts in helping you quit.
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Mindful Relationship with Substances
Maybe you want to explore how alcohol or caffeine makes you feel, and what relationship with a substance is best for you.
What is Health Behavior Change Counseling?
Health Behavior Change Counseling is a bit like a blend of therapy and coaching that focuses on helping people adopt and maintain healthy behaviors. Sessions can focus on all kinds of health related changes, some mentioned above. How we might work with you on them includes the following:
Assessing Readiness and Motivation: We’ll assess where you are in the stages of change (precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance) to tailor interventions in a customized way.
Goal Setting: Together, we can set achievable and realistic goals, breaking down larger health goals into manageable steps. Sometimes this is the step where people get stuck on their own. We can utilize our expertise in human behavior to help you set and achieve goals.
Motivational Interviewing (MI): A key component of health behavior change counseling, MI focuses on exploring and resolving ambivalence by drawing out the client’s own motivations for change. We can also incorporate values identification work from ACT (Acceptance & Commitment Therapy) to help you determine strong reasons for why you’d want to engage in health behavior change.
Education and Skill-Building: We may provide education on health topics and teach specific skills like problem-solving, coping strategies, and stress management.
Support and Accountability: We can provide consistent support, helping clients overcome barriers, maintain motivation, stay accountable to their goals, and live in a way that is consistent with their values!
Benefits of Health Behavioral Change Counseling
Oh, so many!! Overall physical health is a core foundational component of optimal mental health. If you work with us to adjusting and improving your health behaviors, your mental will likely improve as well. We’ll break it down further:
Improved Physical Health: This one may seem obvious, but worth noting, still! By addressing behaviors such as diet, exercise, substance use, and adherence to wellness routines, clients often experience improvements in chronic conditions like hypertension, diabetes, and obesity. This can lead to a reduced risk of disease and better management of existing health issues. If you’re already a pretty healthy person, there is still opportunity for you to feel even better than you currently do.
Enhanced Mental Well-being: As noted above, physical health is an important component in overall mental health. Lifestyle changes, such as engaging in regular physical activity and improving sleep, positively impact mood and mental health. Clients often experience reduced anxiety, depression, and stress, and may develop healthier coping mechanisms for managing life’s challenges.
Long-term Behavior Change: Unlike short-term interventions, health behavior change counseling focuses on sustainable change. Through goal-setting, skill-building, and motivational support, clients develop habits that are more likely to last, providing ongoing benefits to their health and quality of life.
Increased Self-efficacy: Clients gain confidence in their ability to make and maintain health-related changes. The counseling process empowers them to overcome barriers and recognize their own progress, which can improve their self-esteem and resilience. It’s one way to feel better about yourself!
Reduced Healthcare Costs: Healthier behaviors can reduce the need for medical interventions, prescription medications, and hospital visits. Clients who successfully adopt and sustain positive behaviors are more likely to avoid costly health complications in the long run.
Personalized, Client-centered Approach: Health behavior change counseling is tailored to each individual’s unique motivations, values, and readiness for change. This personalized approach helps clients feel more engaged and supported, which is crucial for motivation and following through with their goals.
Enhanced Quality of Life: As clients adopt healthier behaviors, they often experience increased energy, improved physical functioning, and better mental clarity, which can enhance their overall enjoyment of life and ability to engage in meaningful activities. Say hello to a more fun and joyful life!
Prevention of Relapse: We help clients make sustainable change, equipping them with tools and techniques to maintain their progress even when facing setbacks. This prepares clients to handle challenges independently after the work with us ends.
Why Choose Balanced Awakening for Health Behavior Change?
Dr. Yang, Founder of Balanced Awakening, LOVES finding ways to improve and optimize her own health. When she finds something that works for her, she lets our whole team know. The spirit of wellness and enthusiasm towards helping people feel better in their bodies by improving physical health is embedded in Balanced Awakening. We have specialties in similar and overlapping areas such as somatic therapy and substance use counseling. We are experts in behavior change in general, which, mixed with passion and interest for health and wellness, makes us very excited to help you with your health behavior change!
We’re here to support your best health!
With the support of our therapists, we can empower you on your health behavior change journey. If you'd like to learn more about health behavior change counseling in Chicago or schedule a free 15-minute call, please visit our contact page. We offer both in-person and virtual services throughout Chicago, IL.
Health Behavior Change Blog Posts
Health Behavior Change Counseling FAQs
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Health behavior change counseling is kind of like a blend of therapy and coaching, that comes together to help you achieve your health goals and feel the best you can in your body and your life. Through health behavior change, we can help you with make modifications to your sleep, nutrition, movement, substance use, and other factors that influence your overall health.
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The frequency and duration of health behavior change counseling depends on your unique situation and goals. Your therapist will assess your symptoms, goals, and experience of day-to-day life and advise you on how many sessions you may need to feel better and how frequently those sessions may occur. Most people benefit from weekly counseling sessions for a few months in order to see bigger changes in their life.
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In the first two sessions, your therapist will ask you questions about your life currently, your history, and where you hope to be in the future. Some questions will be more specific to your health and health related goals. From there, you and your therapist will discuss goals for health behavior change counseling and a plan of action to help you feel better sooner, and sustain the changes that you make.
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If you’re thinking about it, give it a try! It’s normal to feel ambivalent about any changes, so if you think you might not be ready to make health related changes, that’s ok. Starting the process of counseling can help you explore and build your motivation to make changes in the future, when you feel ready.
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Yes! But with some exceptions. There are 3 situations where, legally and ethically (whether we want to or not) we would have to break your confidentiality. These include if we learn of any potential child or elder abuse from you, we determine that you are at risk of harming yourself or someone else, or we receive a court order for your medical records. Also, some of our providers are under supervision and regularly consult with their supervisor about their client sessions. Supervisors have the same obligation to client confidentiality.
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Our therapy rate for the first two sessions is $250. After that, 55 minute sessions are $225.
Most of our therapists are in network with United Healthcare/Optum, BCBS PPO and Aetna insurance.
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Yes! We offer virtual therapy as well as in-person. Sometimes it’s easier to get support from a therapist over video, and it’s just as effective!