Why this page exists
The difference between good and great often lives between the ears. Mental performance coaching gives Des Plaines athletes the tools to stay composed, motivated, and resilient.
Skills: attention, pre-performance routines, recovery after a bad outing without a character assassination.
Licensed in Illinois. Honest about when you need a clinician more than a coach.
There is strength in asking for help, and Des Plaines clients are discovering that online athlete/sports performance removes the barriers that used to get in the way. Private, professional, and built around your schedule — that is care that lasts.
Here is the local load, named without a brochure: Dense urban and inner-suburban life: winter darkness, transit or expressway commutes, and high-pressure careers. The old in-office version meant O’Hare / I-294 traffic around a session. Athlete/Sports Performance does not erase that — it gives Des Plaines clients a licensed place to stop carrying it alone.
Whether you have been searching for athlete therapy, sports performance coaching, or mental coaching for athletes in Des Plaines, you are in the right place — it is all part of the athlete/sports performance care we provide to Illinois residents.
The good news is that none of this is permanent.
Why Des Plaines clients Reach Out for Athlete/Sports Performance
Before anything changes, it helps to name what you are carrying. For many Des Plaines clients, it sounds something like this:
Your mind is your biggest competitor?
You've trained your body to peak performance. But the mental game? That's where you're losing. Performance anxiety, self-doubt, and pressure are stealing your edge.
Here's what that looks like in practice.
A Simple Path to Starting Athlete/Sports Performance
Performance work blends sport psychology with practical mental skills — visualization, focus, pressure management, and recovery from setbacks — tailored to your sport and your goals.
Your therapist builds a plan around your goals, not a generic script. Progress is reviewed together, sessions are scheduled around your week, and the work adapts as you do. Most Des Plaines clients notice meaningful change within the first month.
All you need is a private space and a reliable internet connection. Your therapist handles the rest — secure video, session notes, and a steady plan designed to help Des Plaines clients feel real relief.
Every session happens over secure, HIPAA-compliant video. You log in from wherever you feel safe — your living room, your parked car, a quiet corner of the house — and your therapist meets you there. No waiting rooms, no commute across Des Plaines.
That is exactly where athlete/sports performance comes in.
Benefits Cook County clients Notice
Here is what Des Plaines clients gain when they start athlete/sports performance with us:
Train your brain like you train your body
Mental performance coaching gives you the psychological edge. Visualization, focus, pressure management—the mental game makes champions.
Licensed experts with 25+ years of experience each
Illinois-licensed experts serving the Chicagoland area and beyond.
Therapy from your couch, car, or closet
No commute. No waiting room. No judgmental receptionist. Log in from wherever you feel safe and comfortable.
What happens in therapy stays in therapy
HIPAA-compliant, encrypted, and completely confidential. Your private life stays private.
Here is why that matters for you.
Evidence-Based Athlete/Sports Performance You Can Rely On
Telehealth is not a compromise. Research consistently shows online therapy is as effective as in-person care for most concerns, and Des Plaines clients get the added benefit of consistency: it is far easier to keep an appointment you can attend from anywhere.
Decades of research back what we do. Modalities like CBT, mindfulness-based approaches, and other evidence-based methods are not buzzwords for us — they are the backbone of how we help Des Plaines clients get better.
We measure success the way you do: by how you feel and function in your daily life. Your clinician revisits your goals throughout care to make sure the work is genuinely moving the needle.
That brings us to the part most people wonder about.
Proudly Serving Cook County
Because care is delivered online, your location in Des Plaines is never a barrier. Airport-corridor workers and northwest-suburban families.
We are proud to serve clients throughout Cook County, from the center of Des Plaines out to the surrounding communities. Wherever you are, quality athlete/sports performance is within reach.
Our Illinois clinicians understand the rhythm of life here..
Here's what that looks like in practice.
Why Telehealth Athlete/Sports Performance Fits Des Plaines Life
Traditional therapy means traffic, parking, time off work, and a waiting room. Online athlete/sports performance removes every one of those barriers while keeping the quality of care identical. For busy Des Plaines clients, that difference is what makes therapy sustainable.
For parents, caregivers, shift workers, and anyone short on time, online athlete/sports performance is often the only version of therapy that actually fits. That accessibility is exactly why so many Des Plaines clients choose it.
Think about the Cook County commute, the parking, the time carved out of an already-full day. Online athlete/sports performance gives all of that time back to you while delivering the same evidence-based care.
Results only matter if they last — which is why the next part matters.
Methods Des Plaines clients Can Feel
Pre-performance routines and attention skills.
Recovery after a bad outing without a character assassination.
Clinical therapy when anxiety or depression is wearing a jersey.
Methods are not a menu of buzzwords. For athlete/sports performance, we pick tools that match the problem — cognitive work, skills you can use the same day, and a relationship honest enough to tell you when something is not working.
Licensure is the floor. You must be physically in Illinois during the session. We will not pretend a video call erases a state line.
Who this is for
Des Plaines athletes from high-school to adult-league who are choking, spiraling, or losing the love of the game.
And it is more accessible than most Des Plaines clients expect.
Why Licensure Is Not a Fine Print Line
Illinois-licensed clinicians may provide telehealth to clients who are physically located in Illinois during the session. That is the legal line — not a slogan. Empower You Experts will not see you for athlete/sports performance unless you are physically in Illinois during the session.
Dr. Lisa Lavella, PsyD, BC-TMH (Arizona and Illinois) and Christina Liakopoulos, LCSW, BC-TMH (Arizona, Illinois, and Indiana) are named clinicians, not a rotating intern pool. Credentials are on the about pages. We do not invent board affiliations.
So what does getting help actually involve?
Frequently Asked Questions
Is sports performance work only for elite athletes?
No. High-school, college, adult-league, and professional athletes all choke, spiral, or lose the love of the game. Mental performance work in Des Plaines covers focus, pressure, injury identity, and the anxiety that shows up as a missed free throw or a tight chest before a start. It is not a pep talk. It is skills — visualization, attention, recovery after a bad outing — plus therapy when the block is bigger than sport.
Do you have a therapy office in Des Plaines?
Our home office is real: 20715 North Pima Road, Suite 108, Scottsdale, Arizona 85255. We do not invent a storefront in every city on this site. Athlete/Sports Performance for Des Plaines residents is licensed Illinois telehealth — you meet by secure video while you are physically in Illinois. That is a service-area practice, not a fake local clinic. If you need the address for records or a map pin, it is North Scottsdale. It is not a Des Plaines waiting room we pretended to open so a page would rank. The clinician is named. The license is the state you sit in during the session.
Are your therapists actually licensed to treat people in Illinois?
Yes. Telehealth is licensed by the state where you are sitting during the session, not by the city on the URL. Dr. Lisa Lavella, PsyD, BC-TMH is licensed in Arizona and Illinois. Christina Liakopoulos, LCSW, BC-TMH is licensed in Arizona, Illinois, and Indiana. If you live in Des Plaines, you simply need to be physically in Illinois when we meet. We do not “see” clients in states where we are not licensed, and we will not pretend a video call erases that rule. The free consult is also where we confirm fit, timing, and whether self-pay or an accepted plan makes sense for you.
Who would I actually work with for athlete/sports performance?
Dr. Lisa Lavella, PsyD, BC-TMH (Arizona and Illinois) and Christina Liakopoulos, LCSW, BC-TMH (Arizona, Illinois, and Indiana). They are named clinicians with decades of practice — not a matching engine and not a new intern every month. The free consult is how you meet the person, ask about athlete/sports performance, and decide if the fit is right. Credentials live on the about pages. We will not hide behind a brand voice when you deserve a human being. If the pairing is wrong, we would rather say so than keep a mismatched hour.
Is online athlete/sports performance in Des Plaines as real as sitting in an office?
For most of the concerns we treat, the research says yes — outcomes track the relationship and the method, not the waiting room. What changes in Des Plaines is logistics. You skip the commute, the parking, and the “who saw me walk in” problem. Sessions run on encrypted, HIPAA-compliant video. You still get a named clinician, a plan you both can explain, and homework that lives in your actual week. If video is a poor fit (safety, technology, or preference), we will say so in the consult rather than force a format that does not serve you.
Do you take insurance for athlete/sports performance in Illinois?
We are primarily a cash-pay practice and currently accept some insurance plans. Many clients in Des Plaines choose self-pay for privacy (sessions do not automatically hit a medical record the way a fully billed insurance episode can) and for simplicity — no surprise denials mid-treatment. We will tell you, before you commit, whether your plan is one we can bill and what a self-pay session costs. We do not advertise “we take everything” because that would be untrue. Call or use the consult form and we will be specific about fee, frequency, and whether a superbill is available. If money is the only barrier, say so in the consult; we would rather have an honest conversation than a bait-and-switch about coverage.
What actually happens in the first athlete/sports performance session?
The first session is an honest conversation, not an interrogation. We cover what brought you in, what you have already tried, how athlete/sports performance has (or has not) helped before, and what “better” would look like in your life in Des Plaines — sleep, work, relationships, the stuff you can feel. You will leave with a sense of the clinician, the pace, and whether the fit is right. There is no pressure to unload your whole history on day one. If it is not a fit, we would rather help you redirect than keep a mismatched pairing.
If I live in a smaller Des Plaines community, is this actually private?
Your sessions are protected by law and by ethics, with the usual mandated-reporting exceptions (risk of harm, abuse of a minor or vulnerable adult). Telehealth adds a practical privacy layer a storefront office cannot: nobody in Des Plaines watches you park at a clinic. You still need a closed door and headphones on your side. We use encrypted video. We will not discuss you in the grocery store, on a sideline, or in a Facebook group. If you share a house or a campus, we will help you plan a setting that is actually private — a parked car with a headset counts.