Annette Popernik

Annette Popernik holds a simple but consequential conviction: the client, not the therapist, is the one who creates real change. Her role, as she sees it, is to illuminate what is already there — the strengths, the values, the identity — and help people learn to rely on those things. That conviction shapes everything about how she works, from the questions she asks to the way she holds space for someone who walks in with nothing particular to say.

A Licensed Clinical Social Worker based in Chicago, Annette works with teenagers, adults, and older adults navigating anxiety, depression, mood disorders, grief, chronic illness and pain, career transitions, family conflict, burnout, and the particular weight of being caught between cultural belonging and personal needs. She offers sessions in English, Spanish, and Italian, and as a Latina and Mexican-American therapist, she brings a culturally grounded perspective to working with individuals from diverse backgrounds, including many immigrant clients.

Annette’s approach is strengths-based and flexible — some sessions are structured around building concrete coping skills, others are simply a place to talk. She is clear that no single therapist suits everyone, and she means it: her stated priority is each person’s wellbeing, whatever form that takes. Teletherapy sessions are available to clients across Illinois.