Austa Murray

Austa Murray is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with more than two decades of clinical experience. She helps people facing stress, anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse, parenting strain, relationship and intimacy concerns, and issues related to self-esteem and grief. She also works with clients dealing with ADHD, bipolar challenges, and compassion fatigue. Austa aims to move at a pace that feels manageable and to build a working connection that supports change.

She uses an attachment and trauma-informed lens to understand patterns that show up in relationships and mood. Sessions often blend listening and insight with practical skill building. Clients can expect a style that is compassionate, non-judgmental, and educational. Austa emphasizes strengths and developmental context while addressing what brought someone into therapy.

Her approach draws on Client-Centered methods that prioritize the client's goals, along with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy techniques to identify and shift unhelpful thinking and behavior. Dialectical Behavior Therapy strategies and the Gottman Method tools are included when they fit a client's needs and goals. These methods are combined thoughtfully rather than applied as a single package.

With 22 years of experience working across individual and group settings, she brings a breadth of practice to common and complex life challenges. She supports people coping with abandonment, attachment issues, blended family dynamics, codependency, communication breakdowns, and recovery from domestic violence or emotional abuse. The focus is on understanding patterns and building skills to navigate change.

Austa practices in Illinois and holds the LCSW credential. She offers therapy in English and does not work with international clients. To begin, clients complete a short matching questionnaire and schedule sessions according to availability.

Using attachment and skills-based methods in online therapy

Austa works from an attachment-informed and skills-focused perspective. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relationships shape current patterns, helping people understand why they react a certain way in relationships and how to try new ways of relating. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and changing behaviors, which can help with anxiety, depression, and coping with life changes.

Choosing the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with each person to decide which methods fit their needs, goals, and preferences. That collaboration means trying tools, reflecting on what helps, and adjusting the plan as progress is made.

If you are considering online therapy, confirm the specific session options before booking since formats are not listed in the biography. Online work can make scheduling easier and help therapy fit into a busy life. It can reduce travel time, allow shorter check-ins during a workday, and make it easier to keep appointments when routines change. Licensed professionals can combine attachment-informed conversations with practical CBT exercises in remote sessions, helping clients practice skills between meetings and track small changes over time.