Murray Manus, LCSW

About Murray Manus

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the State of Illinois and obtained my Masters Degree in Social Work from the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2008 following a seventeen year career as a practicing attorney in Chicago. For the past several years I have worked with Thresholds, the largest community based mental agency in Illinois, helping people with a wide variety of mental health conditions to be able to continue living independently in the community and providing therapy/counseling to help them address various life issues and move forward towards achieving their life goals. I am very skilled in providing personal counseling/therapy based upon the principle of unconditional positive regard for my clients to create a safe, nonjudgmental and supportive therapeutic environment where clients are able to discuss any issues or concerns they might have in an atmosphere of acceptance, respect, empathy and understanding. I jointly work with each client as an equal partner to construct a therapy plan tailored to each person’s specific needs. I have a passionate belief in the inherent human dignity of all individuals, whatever their background or station in life, and strongly support the right of everyone to define for themselves what constitutes a meaningful and fulfilling life. One reason that the issue of self-definition of one’s life is so important to me is that I was subject to substantial emotional trauma during my entire childhood and have been in therapy dealing with this issue. A significant aspect of being a childhood trauma victim is that you never feel comfortable being yourself – everything you do is calculated to pleasing your caregivers to get their approval and avoid further abuse. I can therefore easily relate to people’s struggles to define their true identity and uncover their most genuine, core self. In addition, I have never had any respect for society’s gende