Anxiety Therapist in Chicago, IL
It's late at night, and your mind won't switch off. You're replaying a conversation from this morning and rehearsing one that hasn't happened yet. Your body is tired, but your thoughts keep running the show. If worry shows up before every decision and every hard conversation, you're in the right place to find an anxiety therapist in Chicago, IL who does more than nod along.
Anxiety therapy built around tools, not just talk
At Restartt, anxiety work is active. We use Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), a structured, skills-based form of CBT. Instead of open-ended venting, sessions focus on the rigid beliefs underneath the worry, the "musts," "shoulds," and "I can't mess up" thinking that keeps anxiety running.
Our approach draws on REBT-based anxiety treatment to help you change the thinking patterns that keep worry going. Sessions happen in person at our Downtown Chicago office on North Michigan Avenue, and online across Illinois. You leave with something to practice, not just something to think about.
Who this is for
This work fits adults, often working professionals, who look fine on the outside but feel stuck in their own heads. Many have tried therapy before. They felt heard, but nothing changed in how they respond in the moment. This time they want to understand why they keep getting stuck.
We also see teens as young as 13. The common thread is a pattern, not a label: overthinking decisions, holding yourself to standards that never feel like enough, feeling controlled by your own reactions.
To be straight with you, we do not work with chronic illness or severe mental health conditions, and we'll help point you toward better-fit care if that's what you need. We also aren't the right place if you're specifically seeking somatic methods like EMDR or Brainspotting.
What anxiety looks like when it walks in
Some people come to us mainly for the racing heart and sudden fear of panic attacks, while others live with a low hum of dread all day. Both are real, and both respond to the same core method.
If your mind loops through the same fears on repeat, working through constant worrying and overthinking is often where therapy makes the biggest difference. Many clients tell us they are tired of feeling anxious all the time and want to understand why it never seems to switch off.
What sessions actually look like
We work at a whiteboard. Together we break down a real situation using the ABC model: the Activating event, the Belief you attached to it, and the Consequence, meaning how you felt and what you did. The work is finding the belief driving the reaction, then testing whether it holds up.
Your first visit is a 60-minute intake. From there, ongoing sessions run 53 to 60 minutes. You'll leave with homework to practice between meetings, because the change happens in the moments outside this office.
Most clients notice real shifts within three to four sessions. That's an observed pattern, not a promise, and it comes from the skill-based nature of the work. You start catching your own thinking in real time.
What tends to change
Clients most often report feeling less controlled by their reactions. They can sit with discomfort or uncertainty without spiraling. They make decisions without needing everything to be perfect first.
Your therapist, Angela Orlando Cameli, LCSW, CADC, is trained in REBT, CBT, and trauma-informed care, and is currently accepting new clients. She works with individuals and women across ages 13 to 64, with focus areas in anxiety, trauma, depression, and substance use. Restartt was founded by Bryanna Tartt, LCSW, CADC, an Associate Fellow of the Chicago Institute for Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy.
Common questions about depression treatment
What type of therapy should I choose for anxiety?
Structured, skills-based therapy tends to work best for anxiety, and REBT is exactly that. It targets the beliefs feeding the worry rather than only revisiting the past. Because you learn to catch and dispute your own thinking, the tools keep working long after sessions end. That's the whole point of the method: less dependency, more self-reliance.
What is the 3-3-3 rule for anxiety?
You name three things you see, three you hear, and move three parts of your body for grounding. It can settle a spike in the moment, but it doesn't change what's driving the anxiety. Our work goes underneath the moment to the belief creating it, so the spike gets smaller over time instead of just being managed.
How much does anxiety therapy in Chicago cost, and do you take insurance?
The initial intake is $200, and ongoing sessions are $150. We're in network with Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, and Optum. A sliding scale based on annual income is available, starting at $60 per session, so cost doesn't have to be the reason you wait.
How soon can I get an appointment?
Most new clients are seen within one to two weeks, and we respond to inquiries the same day. You can start with a free 15-minute consultation, in person or online, or skip it and go straight to booking your intake. Consent forms come by email before your first session.
Ready when you are
Deciding to reach out takes something, and you don't have to perform okay here. Just tell us what's going on. If you want to actually work, not only talk, book your consultation or intake with Angela today and take the first concrete step toward quieter thinking.
If you're in crisis or need urgent help, this practice does not provide emergency services. Call or text 988, dial 911, or go to your nearest emergency room.