Professional life · Individual therapy · Chicago
Therapy for educators in Chicago
Teaching and supporting others can involve emotional demands that extend well beyond scheduled hours. You may care deeply about the work while feeling depleted by competing needs and limited resources.
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What you may be noticing
- Guilt about not doing more
- Carrying the day into evenings
- Feeling disconnected from the reasons you began
Your experience may look different. These examples are starting points for a conversation.
How we can work on this
We can explore the demands you face, the expectations you place on yourself, and realistic room for recovery. The work can include burnout, boundaries, and reconnecting with priorities outside your role.
I am Sam Rustum, LCPC. My work is collaborative: we will discuss your priorities, choose a starting point, and check whether our approach is useful to you.
Caring deeply when your capacity is limited
You may spend the day responding to other people’s needs and arrive home with little patience left. An unfinished task or concern about a student can make rest feel undeserved. We can examine how caring about the work has become connected with doing more than you can sustain.
In a session, we might return to an evening when you kept working despite exhaustion. What felt difficult about stopping? Were you trying to prevent a problem, avoid criticism, or meet an expectation that nobody had stated clearly? We can look at those reactions alongside workload, resources, and the demands of your setting.
From there, we might practice communicating a limit, setting a stopping point for preparation, or recognizing when guilt is making a decision for you. We can also talk about disappointment, anger, and the distance between the work you hoped to do and the conditions you face. These conversations give attention to you as a person, including relationships, interests, and questions about your future in education.
Questions you may be asking
Can I talk about feeling less patient with students or family?
Yes. We can explore when that change appears, what has been building around it, and how you respond afterward. A specific interaction can help us identify a useful starting point.
What if a boundary seems unrealistic in my workplace?
We will consider the consequences and limits you actually face. A change may involve a smaller decision, a clearer conversation, or asking for support rather than assuming you can control the entire workload.
Can therapy include uncertainty about continuing in education?
Yes. We can discuss what remains meaningful, what has become difficult, and the personal considerations around changing roles. You can take time to understand the question before making a decision.
A place to begin
Let’s make room for what you need.
A free 15-minute consultation gives us a chance to talk about what is difficult, answer your questions, and consider whether working together fits what you need.