About Us
Who We Are
A community of therapists, consultants, and trainers who bring the full range of their own lived experience to their work.
We offer psychotherapy, consultation and training to enhance the emotional, psychological, and spiritual well being of individuals, families, and communities — beginning with ourselves. We offer services in-person on the Northside of Chicago, and virtual services across Illinois, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oregon, and Wisconsin.
Anti-Racist & Anti-Oppressive Practice
We examine how we’ve each been socialized, what we’ve benefited from, what has harmed us, and bring that awareness directly into clinical practice. Interrogating our own power and privilege isn’t optional; it’s part of the work.
Intersectional Practice
We hold presenting concerns within their full systemic context: race, power, identity, and the dynamics between therapist and client. Our own intersecting identities are part of that picture, not separate from it.
LGBTQIA+ Affirmative Practice
We offer care from attuned therapists across the full spectrum of gender, sexuality, and relationship structure.
Trauma-Informed Practice & Trauma Treatment
Trauma-informed care is our foundation. Our clinicians also bring specific expertise in evidence-based trauma treatment and body-centered modalities, including EMDR, IFS, Somatic Experiencing, DBT, ACT, and expressive therapies.
Self-First
We maintain an active practice of self-examination, interrogating internalized beliefs, holding our mistakes with self-compassion, learning from our queer and BIPOC community, and staying committed to growth. We don’t arrive complete. We stay curious.
Our Mission
To offer identity-centered psychotherapy, consultation, and training rooted in the belief that understanding ourselves is inseparable from supporting others. We are committed to building a community where every person (client, clinician, and trainee) can access the fullness of who they are.
A Note on Live Oak
Live Oak was founded in 2004 by Bruce Koff and Jeff Levy with a clear conviction: that trauma and marginalization are clinical realities that demand a direct, informed response. From the beginning, the practice centered on the harm caused by systemic heteronormativity, and on building a space where that harm could be named and addressed.
In the years since, Live Oak has been on a living, evolving journey. We’ve deepened our understanding of how trauma and marginalization operate across the full spectrum of human identity, and how those identities intersect in ways that require more than a single lens.
That evolution shapes everything: how we practice, how we train, how we lead, and how we grow. We don’t think of Live Oak as a finished project. We think of it as a community in practice, committed to becoming more of what we believe in, together.