Leah Fishbein, LMFT

The therapeutic relationship is a crucial vehicle for change. Effective therapy requires clients to feel at ease with their therapist.  To foster that environment, I aim to be personable and professional. I reject the stance of a detached expert and step into curiosity to be an active, collaborative partner in our work. I aim to lead with compassion and humility, honoring clients as experts on their own lives. I also invite and embrace feedback around what is and isn't working in the therapeutic process.

My goal is to help you feel:

  • Comfortable enough to explore the things you don't understand 

  • Challenged in widening the lens through which you examine the world and yourself

  • Safe enough to try something different in relationships, starting with your relationship with me 

  • Supported in enacting the insight that blooms inside therapy outside of the therapy office

My therapeutic philosophy:

Ultimately, you are the expert on your life. I work passionately alongside you to help uncover what is blocking you from accessing your own innate wisdom. Therapy is a place to widen the lens of understanding of both the problems you face and the potential solutions for them. 

I am an integrative and systemic therapist who believes in treating the whole person. I work to understand one's problems in the larger context of their life. This means exploring how larger forces — culture, biology, the socio-political realm, and family of origin — influence one's experience and adapt our work accordingly. I hold an appreciation for how your inner world affects your outer world and vice versa, for they are nested interconnected systems where understanding one helps us better understand the other. 

Most people seek therapy for issues relating to anxiety, depression, or relational conflict. These presenting problems tend to be symptoms of larger issues. SunPath offers a space to go beyond treating symptoms and address problems at their root so holistic healing can occur. 

Therapeutic approaches need to reflect the diversity of human experience. Trained in a number of evidence-based models of therapy, I tailor treatment to intervene in a way that is best suited for my clients' needs and personalities. Sessions can range from practical problem solving to body-based meditations.

My promise to you 

All research shows that your relationship with your therapist is the biggest predictor of therapeutic success. The most important factor in determining if we are a good therapeutic "fit" is whether you feel comfortable with and understood by me. If after a few sessions, you feel I am not the right "fit," for whatever reason, I will help you find someone who is. Therapy can be hard enough, your therapist doesn't need to make it any harder!

Credentials

  • Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of Illinois

  • Adjunct Professor at Northwestern University

  • Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy for The Family Institute at Northwestern University

  • Clinical Fellow of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy

  • Approved Supervisor Candidate of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy

  • Bachelor of Arts from The University of Wisconsin - Madison

Therapy Modalities

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS)

  • Intimacy for the Inside Out (IFIO)

  • Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)

  • Integrative Systemic Therapy (IST)

  • Mindfulness

  • Attachment-Based Therapy

  • Family systems theory

  • Trauma-Informed treatment

Clinical and Research Experience

Prior to founding SunPath Psychotherapy, I spent six years training then working as a staff clinician at The Family Institute at Northwestern University, one of the nation's leading relationship-based behavioral health organizations. Before becoming a therapist, I spent a decade in Marketing. 

  • Individual supervisor and Adjunct Professor at The Family Institute at Northwestern University's Marriage and Family Therapy master's program

  • Staff Therapist, Couples Service Line, The Family Institute at Northwestern University

  • Post-Graduate Clinical Fellowship in Couples Therapy at The Family Institute at Northwestern University

  • Teaching Assistant, Building Loving and Lasting Relationships: Marriage 101, Northwestern University

  • Research Assistant, Dr. Alexandra Solomon's Relational Self-Awareness Lab, Northwestern University 

  • Clinical training at the Bette D. Harris Child and Family Clinic at The Family Institute at Northwestern University

Advanced Trainings

Driven by curiosity, I am committed to continuously refining my craft and ensuring my practice evolves to include evidence-based best practices.

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS) Level One and Two Training

  • Intimacy From the Inside Out (IFIO) Basic Training

  • Externship in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) 

  • Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP) Immersion Course 

  • Post-Graduate Clinical Fellowship in Couples Therapy at The Family Institute at Northwestern University

  • Seeking Educational Equity & Diversity (SEED) Training

  • Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Certificate Course

  • Additional advance trainings in Discernment Counseling, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and attachment-based psychotherapy

Book a free 15-minute consultation