Yuwen Peng works with individuals, couples, and families. Before entering the counseling field, she worked in data-focused roles and later found herself drawn to more relational, people-centered work. She is currently pursuing her Master’s of Marriage and Family Therapy at Northern Illinois University.

Yuwen brings curiosity, empathy, and a nonjudgmental approach to her work. She strives to create a warm and collaborative space where clients feel safe to explore their thoughts and emotions. Her approach is informed by narrative and experiential therapies, while also integrating systemic and Gottman-informed work.

As an immigrant herself, Yuwen is especially interested in working with clients navigating cultural differences as well as the broader challenges of the immigrant experience, including systemic and social pressures. She brings an understanding of the emotional and relational complexities that can come with living between different expectations and environments.

When working with individuals, Yuwen is interested in how fear and external expectations shape one’s sense of self. She helps clients better understand these influences and develop a more authentic way of relating to themselves.

In her work with couples, Yuwen believes that many challenges are not about a lack of love, but about difficulties in expressing needs and emotions. She focuses on helping partners build safer communication and deeper understanding. In her free time, Yuwen enjoys baking and spending time with her family and dog.

Yuwen is fluent in Mandarin.

Martin McGovern is a Licensed Social Worker who works with youth, adults, and couples to navigate difficult mental health challenges, relationship dynamics, and life transitions. With a calm, collaborative presence, Martin helps clients slow down, tune in to their internal experience, and make intentional choices that align with their values.

Drawing from evidence and strengths-based approaches, Martin helps clients explore the deeper roots of their patterns while developing practical tools for change. Additionally, he integrates cognitive and mindfulness-based strategies to support emotional regulation and self-understanding.

Before becoming a therapist, Martin worked in career coaching and communication strategy, experiences that informed his work with professionals seeking clarity, purpose, and healthier work-life balance. He is particularly passionate about supporting individuals facing burnout, perfectionism, and anxiety.

Martin earned his master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is dedicated to creating an affirming, inclusive space for all clients and is attuned to the impact of culture, identity, and systems on mental health.

Martin sees clients at Wellington Counseling Group’s River North and Lakeview locations.

(Polska wersja poniżej)

Paul Stojek is a compassionate Marriage, Family, and Individual Therapist dedicated to helping people navigate life’s challenges, with a special emphasis on Men’s Mental Wellness, Premarital Counseling (Prepare & Enrich Certified Facilitator), and serving the Polish community. He brings a unique blend of empathy and clinical expertise to his practice. For couples, his Gottman Level 2 certification is key to empowering them to build stronger, more fulfilling relationships through effective communication and a shared vision; he also offers specialized Discernment Counseling for those at a marital crossroads. Fluent in both English and Polish, Paul ensures he creates a welcoming and culturally sensitive therapeutic environment for all his clients. He deeply believes in the transformative power of a collaborative, solution-focused approach, working with individuals to explore solutions and actively re-author their life stories. Recognizing that feelings of overwhelm, discouragement, or confusion are common experiences, Paul’s central goal is to establish a therapeutic partnership where clients feel safe, respected, and empowered to tap into their inner strengths and reclaim their sense of agency. Paul’s journey to becoming a therapist is enriched by a diverse academic foundation, including a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and a Master of Science in Healthcare Information Systems and Operations Management from Loyola University Chicago. His prior experience in the healthcare industry provides valuable systemic insights, which he later complemented with a Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy from Capella University. Beyond his professional life, Paul enjoys cherishing time with family, friends, and his dogs, staying active, taking long walks, and connecting with new people—all of which reinforces his personal dedication to helping his clients find greater comfort, joy, and peace in their lives

Polish Version:

Paul Stojek to pełen współczucia Terapeuta Małżeński, Rodzinny i Indywidualny (Marriage and Family Therapist, MFT), oddany wspieraniu ludzi w pokonywaniu życiowych wyzwań, ze szczególnym naciskiem na Zdrowie Psychiczne Mężczyzn, Poradnictwo Przedmałżeńskie (Certyfikowany trener programu Prepare & Enrich) oraz służenie społeczności polskiej. W swojej praktyce łączy wyjątkową empatię z wiedzą kliniczną. W pracy z parami kluczowy jest jego certyfikat Gottman Level 2, który umożliwia wzmacnianie relacji, pomagając budować silniejsze i bardziej satysfakcjonujące związki poprzez efektywną komunikację i wspólną wizję; oferuje również specjalistyczne Poradnictwo Decyzyjne (Discernment Counseling) dla osób znajdujących się na rozdrożu małżeńskim.

Biegła znajomość zarówno języka angielskiego, jak i polskiego pozwala Paulowi stworzyć przyjazne i wrażliwe kulturowo środowisko terapeutyczne dla wszystkich swoich klientów. Głęboko wierzy w transformującą moc współpracy i podejścia skoncentrowanego na rozwiązaniach, pracując z klientami nad szukaniem rozwiązań i aktywnym współtworzeniem ich historii życiowych. Uznając, że uczucie przytłoczenia, zniechęcenia czy zagubienia jest powszechnym doświadczeniem, głównym celem Paula jest nawiązanie partnerstwa terapeutycznego, w którym klienci czują się bezpiecznie, są szanowani i upoważnieni do wykorzystania swoich wewnętrznych sił i odzyskania sprawczości.

Droga Paula do terapii została wzbogacona o różnorodne podstawy akademickie, w tym tytuł licencjata w zakresie Administracji Biznesowej oraz tytuł magistra w dziedzinie Systemów Informacyjnych i Zarządzania Operacjami w Opiece Zdrowotnej, uzyskane na Loyola University Chicago. Jego wcześniejsze doświadczenie w sektorze opieki zdrowotnej zapewnia cenne, systemowe spojrzenie, które później uzupełnił tytułem magistra Terapii Małżeńskiej i Rodzinnej zdobytym na Capella University.

Poza życiem zawodowym, Paul ceni sobie czas spędzany z rodziną, przyjaciółmi i psami; lubi pozostawać aktywny, odbywać długie spacery i poznawać nowych ludzi – wszystko to wzmacnia jego osobiste zaangażowanie w pomaganie klientom w odnalezieniu większego komfortu, radości i spokoju w ich życiu.

Briana Rodriguez is a psychotherapist with Wellington Counseling Group. Briana works with couples and individual adults at our River North and Lakeview offices, and is available for telehealth sessions. Briana holds her Master of the Arts in Clinical Psychology Counseling Practice from Roosevelt University. 

Briana will provide a supportive environment for clients to process issues including: trauma, challenging life transitions, relationship challenges, and deficits in self-esteem. Briana is down-to-earth, empathetic, and authentic. She believes in meeting clients where they’re at. Often clients come in feeling stuck, especially when it comes to a reliance on unhealthy coping mechanisms, learned in the past, but an ill-fit for growing into the future. Briana can help support clients in identifying why they are drawn to these same patterns of behavior, and to develop and incorporate new, more functional behaviors of their choosing. Briana practices with a systemic mindset, aware that we do not live in isolation, and are impacted by our families, peers, and the larger culture. 

Outside of providing therapy, Briana enjoys spending time with loved ones (including her dog), being out in nature, catching up on TV shows, and singing.

Susan is a Gottman Institute-trained couples specialist who also treats adults in every stage of life, helping them understand themselves better and feel more balanced, healthy, and confident. She specializes in helping people transition through and face the challenges and rewards related to: dating, marriage, and bringing children into their lives, as well as in career changes, affairs, divorce, illness, and bereavement. Susan also has extensive experience in family advocacy, including adoption, surrogacy, learning differences, and disability.

Susan works to help clients make sense of their relationships, emotions, and their changing view of the world. She employs a variety of methods, often combining multiple schools of thought in order to best serve her clients. She serves whatever role her clients need – a sounding board, a champion, or a supportive presence. Her goal is to create a warm, collaborative, empathetic, and genuine environment that is conducive to drawing out insight and inviting change.

Susan earned her master’s degree in Community Counseling from Argosy University in Chicago and an MBA in Organizational and Psychological Behavior from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Her clinical fellowships included roles in trauma, abuse, and the LGBTQI community.

In her free time, Susan is a presenter and mentor for Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project. She volunteers for a number of non-profits, while also serving as the founder of the Illinois Chapter of the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. She enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, snowshoeing, playing tennis, watching movies, and learning new languages.

Dr. Brandon Arbuckle is a licensed marriage and family therapist with more than two decades of experience in private practice. His primary focus is working with couples on conflict resolution and emotional dysregulation between partners. With a background in the intersection of neuroscience and change in couples, Dr. Arbuckle understands how the body responds to trauma and emotional distress as well as the effect this can have on the lives of those in intimate relationships. He works to help couples develop greater and more secure emotional connections, as well as identify opportunities for growth in their relationships.

Dr. Arbuckle is a certified facilitator of Prepare/Enrich™, as well as a supervisor approved by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. He regularly supervises and consults with those seeking to become an LMFT in Illinois.

Dr. Arbuckle earned his Ph.D. in Pastoral Theology, Personality and Culture from Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary, a Methodist Seminary on the campus of Northwestern University. The field of Pastoral Theology is interdisciplinary, with influence from clinical psychology, psychology of religion and anthropology.

In his free time, he enjoys watching movies, art, playing baseball with his two children, and exploring the varied cuisine offered by the world’s most delightful city: Chicago.