Bria Mccalpin

She/Her/Hers

Chicago

Clinical License

Illinois Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist 166.001776

Education

M.A. in Couple and Family Therapy, Adler University, Chicago, IL

B.S. in Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana-Champaign, IL

A green decorative plant in a wooden vase.

Specialities

Adulting & Responsibility
Anxiety & Depression
Attachment & Family Of Origin
Couples Therapy
Dating & Romance

Techniques

Collaborative Language Systems Theory
Strength Based Therapy
Marriage & Family

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“Family” stirs up different meanings for each person, mostly because each of us comes from a unique family structure. Coming from a single parent household for the better part of my life, my definition of family was influenced by the saying, “it takes a village.” Despite experiencing limited therapeutic resources and the stigma in the Black community around mental health, I was inspired to supply individuals with tools to have healthy relationships, i.e., in family, in friendship, and in romantic connections. As a Black person, I hope to do my part to undo the negative association with therapy in my community. While having earned my Masters in Couple and Family therapy, I am increasingly encouraged to not lose my determination in providing to others, especially for all underrepresented communities.

"Bria has been such an amazing therapist over the years I was able to see her. She has helped me grow in so many areas of my life. She taught me a lot of great therapy techniques and strategies I will be able to take with me. I would recommend Bria and Optimum Joy to anyone looking for therapy." - GC

“My husband and I realized our daughter had unhealthy coping mechanisms well after they showed up in her life. It was a shock! I wanted my baby to get the care she needed, but it took some couples work with Bria to realize that our parental relationship had a big part of why my daughter was feeling a negative impact. It was a moment of humility and learning that I think only took place with the grace and direction we got from our work with Bria.”

"It's easy to feel scared to share, especially fearing my raw emotions are too big or will get best of me. Bria actively listens, and her patience and presence helped me move from dreading therapy to looking forward to spending time together.”

"Working with Bria has been such a POSITIVE experience! Even thought some of the subject matter we cover is difficult, Bria bring so much light to our conversations. I can't remember a session where we didn't have at least one good laugh together."

"Being a sole caretaker for my grandkids, one with ADHD, is sometimes an overwhelming responsibility and in many ways stretched me beyond what I thought I was capable of. In my work with Bria, I was able to have a moment to breathe, asses where me and my family were at, and by supporting myself, better support my grandchildren. She really helped me gain perspective and create a plan."

Reviews

Our clients' stories

What is your favorite thing about being a counselor?
My name is Bria McAlpin and I’m a counselor at Optimum Joy. My favorite thing about being the counselor is actually seeing a client’s growth throughout our sessions. I enjoy watching the client’s healing journey unfold and that is one of the most inspiring moments and beautiful moments to see with clients. To see that moment where it finally clicks like, “oh, I’ve been putting in this work and here I am now.” It’s such a rewarding experience.
How do you view your responsibility to your clients?
I know as a therapist, I have a responsibility in my clients’ lives and in that responsibility, I’m shaping or affecting something with how I respond. I do want to make sure that when I am seeing clients, I am offering hope, I am inspiring them, I am working to make sure that they think about things in a different way. So it is so rewarding to sit with a client in that space and actually have these conversations that they may not have with other people.
It’s so rewarding to see clients having these conversations, building emotional intelligence, building boundaries, and even just reflecting on like, “okay, where am I now and where do I want to go?” So to be a part of that relationship is so rewarding. It’s so hard to describe it as anything else when the client chooses you to be their therapist.
What led you to become a counselor?
I chose to become a counselor based off my friend group. I always seem to be the therapist. And when I noticed that, I was always asking like, “okay, why me? Why are my friends using me to come to for these issues?” And I realized it was, I was active listener. I will try to stay neutral as best as I could. I will offer different solutions versus—and some of us like it—that bias their friends have for them. But sometimes we need different solutions to really make us more well-rounded, look at different like avenues or branches of our decisions.
When I went to get my psychology degree, I realized that it was mainly science-based and I realized that wasn’t really hitting home for me. I wanted to build deeper connections with other people. And I realized that counseling was going to be that—therapy was the way to go for me because I wanted to have a positive impact on someone’s life and even help them grow in different avenues.
Which clients are you most passionate about working with?
When I think about the clients that I do want to work with that I’m very passionate about, I think of people of color and I think of couples and I think of families. I want to serve a community that doesn’t really think about mental health that much. But if they’re searching for a therapist, they’re like, “oh, this person looks like me. They could probably understand my perspective more.” And I want to be that person.
I want to make sure that when a client comes in, they don’t have to explain a lot of things. They’re like, “okay, you may know a little bit.” And I’m like, “okay, yeah, you know, I do. I resonate with that.” And I want to work with couples and families because I want to make sure that the whole group is feeling like they can show up for each other. So those are people that I’m passionate about. And I’m excited to see those clients more.
What brings you joy?
When I think about what brings me joy, I think about new experiences and meeting new people. I enjoy trying out new restaurants with my friends. I enjoy going to different experiences like laser tag, paintball, and meeting different groups of people. Because you never know when you meet someone new and you’re like, “oh, we click.” And that’s a very exciting thing to experience.
What would you say to someone nervous about starting therapy?
With counseling, there can be a little anxiety because this is a person you don’t know. It is scary at first. But a lot of things are scary at first, so we get through it. A lot of new clients, the first thing that they say is, “oh, I’m feeling a little nervous, but I’m also excited.” And that could be due to like, “okay, who can I talk to about this issue?” And here you go meeting someone, a therapist, and you’re like, “I don’t know who this person is, but I’m about to tell them my whole life story.” And it’s a little anxious to share those things, especially with someone you don’t know.
But when you have a therapist, you build that rapport, you get to know them a little bit more. When you have a therapist that cares about you and wants to see your growth and wants to see you make better decisions for you and your future, it makes it a little bit less scary and more exciting. I want someone that sees me and I want someone that wants to see progression with me, wants to go on this journey with me. So even though it may be scary at first, knowing that you have someone beside you during that time that has that experience, that has that knowledge—it’s like, okay, that brings a little bit more comfort. So despite the nervousness, despite the anxiety, it’s still exciting and a joyful experience.