Queer Sober Therapy was built on the belief that mental health care should be affirming, human, and rooted in genuine connection. Get to know our story, our values, and what drives the work we do.
To provide affirming mental health care that meets people exactly where they are, reduces barriers to getting support, and creates space for every identity, lived experience, and path toward healing.
A Space Rooted In Care
A world where our communities have access to clinicians who truly understand them, and where those clinicians feel just as supported, valued, and cared for as the people they serve.
What Guides Us
Our values are at the center of everything we do at QST. They guide the way we care for our clients, support our team, and create a community where people can show up as their full selves.
We believe healing happens when people feel safe enough to show up honestly and fully as themselves. There is no expectation to shrink, edit, or explain away who you are here. We welcome your identity, personality, lived experiences, creativity, humor, messiness, and humanity into the room. Our therapists are real people too, and we believe meaningful therapy comes from genuine human connection.
We don't believe healing, growth, or meaningful work should require running yourself into the ground. We value boundaries, rest, flexibility, self-awareness, and creating lives that are actually sustainable. That applies to our clients and our clinicians. We believe therapists who are supported in being whole people are better able to provide thoughtful, present, and consistent care.
You are the expert on your own life. Therapy isn't something we do to you. It's something we do together. We value curiosity, honest conversations, feedback, and figuring out what works for you rather than assuming there is one right way forward. That same spirit of collaboration extends to our team through consultation, mentorship, and supporting one another instead of working in isolation.
None of us ever fully "arrive." Growth is ongoing, and we believe curiosity gets us much further than judgment. We encourage clients and clinicians alike to ask questions, challenge old patterns, remain open to new perspectives, and make room for change. We value humility, reflection, and a willingness to keep learning.
We believe healing happens when people feel safe enough to show up honestly and fully as themselves. There is no expectation to shrink, edit, or explain away who you are here. We welcome your identity, personality, lived experiences, creativity, humor, messiness, and humanity into the room. Our therapists are real people too, and we believe meaningful therapy comes from genuine human connection.
Affirming care requires more than saying everyone is welcome. We are committed to ongoing anti-racist, LGBTQIA+ affirming, trauma-informed, and socially conscious practice. We recognize that mental health does not exist separately from identity, culture, privilege, oppression, relationships, and the systems we live within. We are committed to continuing to learn, reflect, listen, and hold ourselves accountable.
We believe trust is built through honesty, consistency, and accountability. We strive to communicate transparently, practice ethically, acknowledge when we get something wrong, and engage in repair when needed. We want our actions, both individually and as a practice, to reflect the values we say we hold.
We believe healing doesn't happen in isolation. Humans need connection, belonging, and people who remind us that we don't have to navigate everything alone. Through therapy, education, consultation, mentorship, and community engagement, we hope to create more opportunities for people to find support, build meaningful relationships, and feel a little less alone in the world. We're here to meet you where you are, believe in where you're going, and remind you that you don't have to get there alone.
How We Got Here
Queer Sober Therapy was founded by Carly with a vision to create the kind of mental health practice she wanted to see more of in the world: affirming, collaborative, human, and deeply rooted in connection.
Throughout her career as a therapist, clinical director, supervisor, and educator, Carly saw the importance of creating spaces where people could explore mental health, identity, relationships, sexuality, and substance use without judgment or assumptions about what healing is supposed to look like.
Her work has included specializing in LGBTQIA+ mental health and substance use, pursuing advanced training in sex therapy, teaching and supervising graduate counseling students at Northeastern Illinois University, providing clinical supervision and consultation, and developing trainings for therapists and other mental health professionals.
Outside of the therapy room, Carly founded Queer Sober Social in 2020 to create more opportunities for connection and community outside of traditional bar-centered spaces. Years of clinical work, education, mentorship, leadership, and community building ultimately came together to form the foundation of QST.
Queer Sober Therapy was created with the belief that clients deserve care that honors the full complexity of who they are, and clinicians deserve environments where they are supported to do meaningful, sustainable work.
Today, our team provides affirming, evidence-based care grounded in curiosity, authenticity, and genuine human connection. Our clinicians bring their own areas of passion and expertise to the work, supporting individuals, couples, and relationships navigating everything from anxiety, trauma, and major life transitions to perfectionism, neurodivergence, family-of-origin patterns, body image, identity, intimacy, and relationship challenges.
While queer and sober communities are at the heart of QST, you don't have to fit into any particular box to belong here. We welcome people across identities and relationships with substances, whether you're sober, sober-curious, practicing harm reduction, questioning your use, or substances aren't part of what brings you to therapy at all.
What connects our work is a belief that quality therapy should help you understand yourself more deeply, feel more connected to the people and life around you, and have a space where all of who you are is welcome.
Taking the first step looks different for everyone. Whether you're ready to start therapy or just want to learn more about Queer Sober Therapy, we'd love to hear from you. Reach out and someone from our team will be in touch soon.
(847) 868-0586
Lakeview, Oak Park, Virtual
