- LGBT related concerns
- Trauma and abuse
- Solution-focused work
About Jennifer
Jennifer Forbes is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) practicing in Illinois with 14 years of clinical experience. She offers counseling for people facing relationship strain, trauma and abuse, grief, anxiety, depression, and life transitions. Jennifer also works with concerns around addiction, parenting, intimacy, and career stress.
Before founding Seed of Hope Counseling Services, she trained at Northern Illinois University where she earned a Bachelor’s in Psychology and a Master’s in Applied Family and Child Studies with a specialization in Marriage and Family Therapy. She has worked in both nonprofit and private settings since 2009, providing counseling, consulting, supervision, and program development.
Her background includes designing and evaluating community programs for crisis and trauma response. She has served on clinical committees for local behavioral health groups and is a member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapist (AAMFT). These roles have involved collaborating with agencies to shape therapeutic initiatives.
In sessions she uses practical, talk-based approaches drawn from client-centered work, cognitive behavioral ideas, solution-focused strategies, and narrative methods. That means conversations focus on understanding what matters to the person, looking at thoughts and behaviors, and trying small changes that can shift patterns.
Clients can expect collaborative work on concrete problems such as communication, coping with loss, sleep problems, and managing stress. Jennifer also offers support around more complex family issues like blended families, divorce and separation, and fatherhood concerns.
Her practice notes a faith background in the original materials, and she has experience serving a wide range of people across community settings. Prospective clients should confirm current session options and formats before booking.
How her therapeutic approaches translate to online work
Client-centered therapy focuses on the person’s priorities. The therapist listens, reflects, and helps people identify what they want to change and why. This approach is useful for relationship questions, identity concerns, and young adult stressors.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) looks at how thoughts and behaviors interact. Sessions often include identifying unhelpful thinking patterns, testing new behaviors, and practicing small changes to reduce anxiety, improve sleep, or manage mood. Solution-focused work concentrates on practical steps and short-term goals to create forward momentum.
Finding the right approach is collaborative. Jennifer will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and what has worked or not in the past. Together they decide which methods to try and adjust the plan as progress is made.
Session formats are not specified in the original profile, so confirm current options before booking. Online sessions can make it easier to fit appointments into a busy early-adulthood life, for example by removing travel time, allowing brief check-ins during work or school breaks, or letting someone choose audio rather than video when that feels better. Licensed professionals often use these practical options to help therapy fit day-to-day routines without promising any particular format.
Areas of expertise
Primary focus
Also works with
Additional focus areas
Therapeutic approaches
Experience
14+ years
Listed in
Illinois
Languages
English
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of issues does she help with?
She works with relationship problems, trauma and abuse, anxiety, depression, grief, addiction, parenting and other life changes listed in her specialties.
How would she approach sessions?
Her style is talk-based and practical, using client-centered principles along with CBT, narrative, and solution-focused techniques to address specific problems and goals.
How much experience does she have?
She brings 14 years of clinical experience working in nonprofit and private settings and developing community programs for crisis and trauma.
What are her credentials and where is she located?
She is an LMFT licensed in Illinois and trained at Northern Illinois University. Her practice is based in Illinois.
Does she meet with people in languages other than English?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can people outside the US work with her?
International clients are not currently accepted; she works with clients within applicable U.S. jurisdictions.
How are fees handled?
Cost varies by location; sessions use a subscription that can be canceled at any time.
What do I need to do to start?
Select the See online therapy options button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session to begin the process.
Online talk therapy through BetterHelp is for adults aged 18 and over and is not emergency care. If you are in danger, use the emergency numbers. Find someone else by name.