Mark Mikyska

Mark Mikyska is an Illinois licensed counselor (LCPC) with 18 years of clinical experience. He offers a warm, interactive style and focuses on helping people move past worry, loss, and painful memories. His approach aims to empower clients to notice patterns and practice new ways of coping.

He uses Trauma-Focused Therapy alongside mindfulness and psychodynamic ideas to help people process difficult experiences. That can include work on anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse, and relationship or family stress. Sessions often include gentle reflection, practical coping skills, and attention to how past experiences shape current reactions.

Mark also draws on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Existential Therapy when helpful. CBT helps break down unhelpful thoughts and build concrete behavior changes. Existential work looks at meaning, values, and life choices when people feel stuck or empty.

He has spent many years as a therapist and crisis worker in the Chicago area. That background informs a steady, direct approach when situations feel overwhelming or urgent. Mark describes his work as respectful and sensitive, aiming to support people while they learn to manage strong emotions.

Sessions focus on realistic goals such as improving sleep, reducing panic, managing anger, or coping with grief. People who are coping with chronic illness, caregiver stress, first responder strain, or issues like abandonment and shame may find these practical supports useful.

How trauma-informed and cognitive approaches work online

Trauma-Focused Therapy in practice helps people process painful memories and reduce the ways those memories affect daily life. It often includes grounding and pacing so people can approach difficult material without becoming overwhelmed.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy focuses on how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors connect. It offers clear skills for managing anxiety, improving sleep, and changing patterns that keep someone stuck.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with each person to match methods to their goals, needs, and comfort level. That might mean trying mindfulness exercises first, then adding CBT techniques or trauma-focused steps as trust grows.

If you plan to try online sessions, confirm the available session formats before booking since the biography does not list them. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy life, reduce commute time, allow shorter check-ins, or let someone choose a quieter time of day. Therapists can adapt exercises, use guided breathing, and assign short home practices to support change between meetings.