Mental Health Resources near Chicago
Community Care for Chicago Activists
is a growing mutual aid and accessibility project founded by Samantha Skvaril, LCPC of Conscious Therapy Connections.
The goal is to build a collective of Chicago therapists offering free, community-funded therapy sessions to local organizers, advocates, and caregivers who are carrying the emotional weight of care and resistance.
Right now, Samantha is opening one free therapy session through Conscious Therapy Connections, while fundraising and recruiting other therapists in Chicago to expand the network.
About Community Care for Chicago Activists
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Community Care for Chicago Activists connects Chicago organizers, advocates, and caregivers with free therapy sessions provided by local therapists.
Each therapist donates their time or offers sessions sustained through community contributions.
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Sessions are offered by fully licensed Chicago-area therapists who are trauma-informed, justice-minded, and aligned with the project’s values of accessibility and collective care.
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Yes — the project is launching with one free therapy spot through Conscious Therapy Connections. As funding grows and more therapists join, additional free sessions will open.
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Therapists who are interested in contributing free or sliding-scale sessions can reach out to join the collective.
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Chicago-area activists, organizers, or caregivers engaged in advocacy or mutual aid work who need a space to process, rest, and heal.
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Sessions are sustained through community donations that cover therapist time, allowing this care to remain free for those who need it most.
What Defines an “Activist” in Chicago?
When I say “activists,” I’m referring broadly to the people doing the work of care, advocacy, and change in their communities — whether that looks like organizing, mutual aid, teaching, caregiving, harm reduction, storytelling, or simply showing up for others in meaningful ways.
You don’t need a title, an organization, or a public platform to be included in this. If your work or your life centers collective wellbeing or justice, this mental health resource is or you.
Examples of activism in Chicago can look like:
Organizing protests or community actions for immigrant rights and against ICE presence in Chicago
Coordinating meals, housing, and childcare for immigrant families affected by raids or detentions
Attorneys providing legal aid or spreading awareness during community response efforts
Photojournalists and journalists documenting local organizing and uplifting community stories
Running or volunteering with Chicago-based mutual aid networks — from food distribution to crisis response
Providing emotional support, transportation, or translation for families navigating instability or fear
Teaching, mentoring, or educating around equity, accessibility, or justice
Supporting reproductive justice, housing equity, or harm reduction initiatives
Creating art, writing, or media that amplifies underrepresented voices and challenges systems of harm
Showing up for neighbors, friends, or community members in need — even when it’s unpaid, unseen, or emotionally demanding
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Community-Funded
Donations directly support therapist time so sessions can remain free and sustainable.
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Therapists Giving Back
Chicago-area therapists volunteer time or receive community-funded pay for donated sessions.
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Rooted in Collective Care
Grounded in trauma-informed, anti-oppressive, and shame-aware values.
My Responsibility & Commitment
As a white therapist, I hold both personal and systemic privilege — privilege that has allowed me to feel safe in spaces where many cannot.
I’ve been able to choose when and how to engage with issues like immigration, policing, or racial injustice, while others have lived with their impacts for years.
Community Care for Chicago Activists is one way I’m using that privilege with purpose — and inviting other clinicians to do the same.
This offering isn’t charity — it’s responsibility. It’s a collective effort to redistribute access, show up with humility, and use the stability and safety we hold to create small pockets of care for those most affected by systemic harm.
As both a therapist and a mom, I think about how care itself can be a form of resistance — the kind we practice in our homes, in our work, and in our communities.
I’ll continue listening to community organizers and activists of color, learning from their leadership, and adjusting how I show up — because solidarity isn’t a single act. It’s a lifelong practice.
— Samantha Skvaril
Request a Free Therapy Session
If you’re a Chicago-area activist, organizer, or caregiver seeking support, please complete the form below to request your free therapy session.
One free therapy session is currently open. As funding and community support grow, more free sessions will become available.
Support Community Care for Chicago Activists
Your contribution sustains free, community-funded therapy for Chicago organizers, caregivers, and advocates — and helps bring more therapists into the network.
*Community Care for Chicago Activists is a community-supported initiative hosted by Conscious Therapy Connections, PLLC. This is not a nonprofit; contributions directly fund therapist time and sustain free therapy for activists and organizers in Chicago.
Therapists: Join the Collective
Are you a Chicago-area therapist interested in contributing a few free or sliding-scale therapy sessions to support local activists and organizers?
We’re building a small collective of clinicians committed to accessibility, care as resistance, and community support.
Complete the short form below to learn more about joining the effort.