James Grider
James GriderCredentials
LPCc, CADCc
Fluent Languages
English
Accepted Insurances
Aetna, Cigna, BCBS, Optum/UHC
Biography
James is a Licensed Professional Counselor (candidate) and Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor (candidate) who was granted his Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. James developed his clinical experience at Above and Beyond Family Recovery Center, on the westside of Chicago helping people struggling with substance dependence and related struggles that generated their destructive behaviors.
James describes the process of counseling as a beautiful dance of emotions shared between patient and counselor. James’s philosophy has always been “we are in this together.” Through practicing bringing our struggles/limitations to the surface we can learn to process and integrate them effectively allowing us to connect genuinely with the world, others, and ourselves. James does not believe that any of us are ever a finished product in terms of growth and development. He enters the therapeutic relationship expecting to learn and grow together with clients in collaboration. While he might carry tools learned through his education and experience, he asserts that his patients hold the experiences that bring these tools to life.
James believes that there is a future version of ourselves that has been patiently waiting to be unburied and brought to life. We already have all of the answers we are looking for embedded within us, lying just beneath the surface waiting to be nurtured and watered. Some parts of ourselves may have been more deeply buried by pain than others; but with enough time and intention, we have the potential to accept and let go of the past, re-discover ourselves in the present, and reinvent our future as we grow into the most authentic version of ourselves.
Specialties
Anxiety Depression Stress Self-Esteem Development Life Transitions