CARE Family Consultation //



Are you feeling: down, depleted, or discouraged?; unable to relax?; that life is in limbo?; discomfort at not being where you think you ought to be?; not as happy as you should be?, and despite professional success, unsettled?

Do you also believe that you can experience more - more happiness, positive self-esteem, and a better you...? I invite you to explore your soul and to embark on your adventure of self-exploration. 

I am a skilled psychologist seasoned in drawing out inner matters to help you break impasses in your life and relationships. My clinical services provide solutions and strategies for individuals, couples, and families for their relief, restoration, and growth. Whether it is working with you to repair your broken heart, parsing existential dilemmas, developing a greater insight into your symptoms or curbing familiar-but-unproductive patterns in practical ways, I provide a compassionate and caring environment where your repair and healing can begin.  I have over twenty years of experience in curating growth, recovery and success in individuals and the many domains of their life; my multicultural expertise has been honed through interviews with hundreds of diverse individuals, couples, and families spanning two decades from Greenland to India to the Faroe Islands. 

My clients come from many walks of life. They range from kids as young as 9-years old, high profile executives, traders, portfolio managers, attorneys, doctors, athletes, medical residents and fellows, musicians, students and startup entrepreneurs to grandmothers as old as 84-years old. They can be driven and talented individuals who may be experiencing challenges in managing stress, communication, self-esteem, addictions (food, substance abuse, or sexual) to those coping with important life transitions such as grief around the loss of a loved one, divorce, illness, or being new in town. I enjoy working with folks as diverse as: college students;  African-American executives, Muslim doctors, biracial couples and families in many different stages of life. Despite their differential ascription to religion, culture, sexual orientation or spiritualism, what is similar across my patients is that they are aware of their need to change their environments or themselves through greater insight into themselves, reflection, and mindfulness.

Generally, three obstacles can delay mental health treatment: For one, seeking a therapist or staying in therapy is never easy. There may be secrets we may keep from ourselves as some inner matters may be too sensitive or painful to expose. Two, it can also be daunting to search from a slew of professionals with varying qualifications and orientations. Not all doctors are alike, nor is their training and how they conduct therapy. Three, there may also be shame or stigma that is may be associated with seeing a clinical psychologist.


Recent disclosure of the mental health struggles of famous personalities and celebrities, such as Prince HarryMichele Obama, Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark of Game of Thrones), Lady Gaga, Michael Phelps, J.K. Rowling, and so forth, have assisted in alleviating the stigma. Hearing stories of how others' struggle can also normalize that you are not alone when you seek help. Recently, Covid-19 has turned the world upside down and amplified our society's need to reconsider mental health as an essential and continuous medical relationship that people can avail in their lives. 


Denial, shame, and fear can keep us disconnected from ourselves and in places of pain. Each of us has our unique ways of suffering. Challenged by distress, some of us can tend to go to dark places, imagine the worst, tend to over-think, and feel trapped in hopeless mental spots; and others may express distress through bodily symptoms such as: tension headaches, clenched jaw or teeth-grinding​ or fatigue. Often times there is a great lag time between when symptoms first appeared in your life to when you will start to seek treatment. When important issues lay buried and health concerns are delayed, one's quality of life may suffer.

I understand how hard it is to make that first call to a therapist. Participating in therapy is a personal and private choice. My approach is free of judgement and harnesses a multi-national understanding of being to kindle greater psychological growth with finesse and sensitivity. While psychiatrists are mostly specialists of medication management, clinical psychologists are trained in the art of understanding and evaluating human behavior through psychotherapy. Cultivating a strong mind is more than being book smart or being good at what you do.


I combine strategy and insight to help you develop greater access to yourself, to boost your self-awareness as well as listening better to others, and enhance your positive emotional connectivity with others.


What is the life you want? What does 'meaningful' mean to you?...in therapy these are only some questions you begin to reflect on, to create a compass for your future decisions by connecting the dots from your past. I provide a high-calibre,  smart, empathic, gentle, and comfortable ambience that allows for introspection. To achieve necessary inner dialogs, I believe a trusting relationship with your therapist is paramount. If necessary, I will collaborate with your primary care doctors, teachers, sponsors, parents and partners to develop a unique and wholesome tailored mental health treatment plan for you.

My patients strive to overcome barriers to gain success through investing in themselves, understanding how their past might play into their present and future, developing keener capacities of listening, for self-awareness, delving into subtexts, and communicating their needs better with their loved ones for authentic connections with oneself and others. Building one's mental health skill set, percolates success in many other domains: friendships, family, peers, marriage and professional domains. 

As ordinary people unravel their complexity, I am humbled by the transformations they achieve and honored when they turn a particularly challenging corner, to partake in their small or big joys - the birth of a baby, enjoying their motherhood, healing of heartbreak, shedding patterns of not accepting disrespect, landing a new job, writing a poem, developing the joy of reading an entire book with focus and without a racing mind, feeling content, and perhaps, even being able to sleep fitfully through a night.


I believe that therapy is one of the most powerful investments you can make. Sometimes requiring that something or someone else change can begin with your self. Even when you can't control what's happening, you can still control the way you respond, and, you can feel more empowered to make sound decisions in your life. I hope that you will make this important investment in yourself. Invite yourself to your adventure of self-exploration. Email sandhyaphd@gmail.com or call 773.800.0170 to take your first step in this journey. 

Regards, Dr. Sandhya

Read more about Dr. Sandhya



Dr. Shaifali Sandhya is the Director of CARE Family Consultation. She is a Cambridge and University of Chicago-educated psychologist and an internationally published author. Dr. Sandhya's work has been featured in international media including the New York Times, Fox, CBS, US News and World Report and National Public Radio


PBS | 2017

Dr. Sandhya explains how psychological group traits can impact refugees' resettlement.

Watch Dr. Sandhya's full interview on PBS


405 N. Wabash

Chicago, IL 60611