Lincoln Square is a neighborhood that rewards patience. People here plant gardens, walk to Cafe Selmarie on a Saturday morning, and tend to their marriages over years, not months. If you have been thinking about therapy, you do not have to go far to find it.
Bergen Counseling Collective sits about half a mile east, in Ravenswood, a 10 to 15 minute walk from most of Lincoln Square. We have been right next door for over a decade. Whether it is couples work, individual therapy, trauma, or grief, the kind of steady, longer-term care this neighborhood tends to want, we are about as close as it gets.
What Lincoln Square Residents Bring to Therapy
Most of the people we see from Lincoln Square are not in crisis. They are managing, often well, and quietly carrying something that has been building for a while:
- A long-term relationship that used to feel effortless and now feels like a daily negotiation
- Career or identity questions at midlife, or at the edge of a transition you did not plan for
- Parenting stress, especially the quiet kind that does not announce itself but builds over years
- Anxiety you have been working around for a long time that is starting to cost you more
- A harder-on-yourself-than-anyone inner voice, and self-esteem that has taken more hits than you let on
- Grief, which here often means the loss of a parent, a long friendship, or a chapter that was quietly ending
The Old Town School of Folk Music, the Book Cellar, Gene’s Sausage Shop’s rooftop, the Lincoln-Western-Lawrence triangle. Lincoln Square is deep in history and built for the long haul. Therapy fits the pace here. We are made for the real work, not the quick fix.
Why People Choose Us
A few things tend to matter to the people who find us:
- Marriage and couples work backed by research. Our founder, Jeremiah Bergen, MS, LCPC, is a Gottman-trained couples therapist with more than 20 years of experience. The Gottman Method is the most studied approach to couples therapy there is, and it gives you concrete tools for the hard conversations, not just a place to have them.
- We take your insurance. BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, UBH PPO, and Cigna PPO, plus HSA and FSA. A lot of specialized practices are cash-only. We are not, because good therapy should not be a luxury.
- Care that affirms who you are. We have been an LGBTQ+ affirming practice since we opened in 2010, and our therapists work across the full range of gender identity, sexual orientation, and relationship structure.
- Therapy in English or Spanish. Sophia Villenas, M.Ed, LPC sees clients in both.
- Hours that fit a real schedule. Weekdays until 9pm, weekends until 5pm.
What We Help With
- Couples and marriage counseling: Gottman Method and Emotionally Focused Therapy for the couples who keep having the same fight, the ones rebuilding after a betrayal, and everyone in between. All relationship types welcome.
- Self-esteem and identity work: For the harsh inner critic, the people-pleasing, and the quiet questions about who you are and what you actually want.
- Anxiety therapy: For the racing mind, the panic that shows up out of nowhere, social anxiety, and the low-grade worry that never fully switches off.
- Depression therapy: For the heaviness that makes ordinary days feel like a lot, the lost motivation, and the sense that the color has drained out of things.
- Trauma therapy: IFS and trauma-informed care for PTSD, childhood and complex trauma, and the patterns that formed long before you had words for them.
- Grief counseling: For loss in all its forms, not only death, but the end of a relationship, a friendship, or a chapter of life.
- Divorce and separation counseling: Clarity and support when a relationship is ending, including discernment counseling for couples who are not yet sure.
- Identity and gender-affirming therapy: Supportive care for LGBTQ+ clients exploring identity, coming out, or seeking affirmation.
- Individual therapy: For everything that does not have a tidy label.
- Online therapy: Secure video sessions anywhere in Illinois.
Our Therapists
Jeremiah Bergen, MS, LCPC founded Bergen Counseling Collective in 2010. He specializes in couples therapy (Gottman Method), individual therapy, and trauma treatment, and has spent over two decades helping people navigate the hardest parts of their lives.
Morgan Eslinger, MA, LCPC works with individuals and couples dealing with anxiety, depression, life transitions, self-esteem, and relational patterns that keep showing up no matter how much you try to change them.
Sophia Villenas, M.Ed, LPC provides individual therapy for adults working through anxiety, depression, identity exploration, cultural adjustment, and relationship dynamics. Sophia offers bilingual therapy in English and Spanish.
Getting Here from Lincoln Square
Our office is at 4525 N Ravenswood Ave, Suite 202, in the Ravenswood neighborhood of Chicago (0.5 miles west from Lincoln Square).
By CTA: Brown Line Western stop is 2 minutes from our door. From anywhere in Lincoln Square, it is either a short walk or a single CTA ride. The #11 Lincoln and #49 Western buses also stop nearby.
By car: 3 to 5 minutes from anywhere in Lincoln Square. Free street parking on Ravenswood Avenue and surrounding streets.
Hours: Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Saturday and Sunday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
Nearby Neighborhoods We Serve
If you are near Lincoln Square but exploring other options, we also serve clients from: Therapy near Andersonville, Therapy near Ravenswood (main office).
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you accept my insurance?
We accept BCBS PPO, Aetna PPO, UBH PPO (also known as Optum/United Healthcare Behavioral Health), and Cigna PPO. We also accept HSA and FSA payments. If you have a different insurance plan, we provide superbills so you can submit for out-of-network reimbursement. If you are not sure what your plan covers, we are happy to help verify benefits before your first session.
How far is your office from Lincoln Square?
Our office at 4525 N Ravenswood Ave is 0.5 miles west from Lincoln Square. See the transit and driving directions above. We also offer telehealth sessions for anyone located in Illinois, which eliminates the commute entirely.
Do you offer telehealth or just in-person?
Both. Many of our clients do a mix. Some start in person and switch to telehealth when life gets busy, others start telehealth and eventually want to come in person. Whatever works for you works for us. Telehealth is available throughout Illinois via a secure HIPAA-compliant platform.
What are your hours?
Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Saturday and Sunday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Evening and weekend availability matters, especially if you are working around a full schedule.
What can I expect in my first session?
Your first session is primarily about getting to know each other. Your therapist will ask about what is bringing you in, your background, and what you are hoping to get from therapy. You do not need to have your thoughts organized or know exactly what to say. Most people feel nervous, and that is completely normal. It is also your chance to see if the therapist feels like a fit. By the end of the session, you will usually have a sense of what you want to work on.
How do I get started?
Call (312) 870-0500 or schedule a free 15-minute consultation online. We use the consultation to understand what you are looking for, answer your questions, and match you with the right therapist for your needs. No pressure, no obligation.
Are your therapists LGBTQ+ affirming?
Yes. All of our therapists are trained to work with clients across the full spectrum of gender identity, sexual orientation, and relationship structure. We have been an LGBTQ+ affirming practice since we opened in 2010. You will not have to educate your therapist or wonder if they get it.
Ready to Get Started?
The hardest part is usually making the call. Everything after that gets easier. Schedule a free 15-minute consultation or call (312) 870-0500. We will talk through what is going on, answer your questions, and figure out the right next step together.
Bergen Counseling Collective
4525 N Ravenswood Ave, Suite 202
Chicago, IL 60640
(312) 870-0500