Garden Refuge Nonprofit & Counseling Center

05/01/2026

Is your therapy trauma-informed?

Stabilization comes before healing begins. The nervous system must learn safety, regulation, and how to complete the stress cycle to regain calm and focus.

05/01/2026

Need therapy. Don't have insurance? Subsidize policies are available for as little as $8/mo for an individual earning $30,000/yr. Check out the calculator at the link. Garden Refuge accepts BCBSIL

Find, compare and buy affordable, comprehensive health insurance. Access savings on premiums, deductibles and copays and enroll in less than 10 minutes.

04/27/2026

Contact us for details at GardenRefugeIL.org
Insurance: BCBS, Aetna, Cigna (Medicaid & Medicare - starting in Aug/Sept)
Direct pay, or out-of-network billing.

04/27/2026

GardenRefugeIL.org

04/22/2026

It isn't every day we get to work on the other missions of GR. Today we helped set up the community garden at Hope Springs. Coming together to provide a beautiful space is always amazing. A favorite gardening trick - twine to mark out straight lines.

04/17/2026

"Licensed Practitioner of the Healing Arts" is the title Medicaid gives counselors. We will accept Medicaid in August.

04/15/2026

Araxie Jensen will be at the Inaugural Religious Trauma Symposium at Harvard Divinity School this week. Just a little reminder from Garden Refuge: Faith should promote healing, not hinder it.

04/09/2026

People fear that discussing religious trauma, or going to counseling for it, means giving up on God and religion. In same cases it might, but not always. A sensitive therapists will create a safe space where you can process your trauma, mourn if you need to, and come to your OWN ideas and beliefs. That may mean you less willing to be a victim and still religious, it may mean you completely stepping away from both God and religion. Most importantly, it should be your choice, and part of your healing.

Your body remembers what your theology told you to ignore.

Religious trauma isn’t just “being hurt by church.”

It’s what happens when your nervous system gets trained to believe that safety, belonging, and even God are tied to fear, control, and performance.

It’s when:
• Your body tenses at the word “submission”
• Your stomach drops when you question authority
• Your voice shuts down because honesty once cost you connection
• Your peace depends on getting it right

This isn’t a lack of faith.

It’s a conditioned survival response.

When spiritual environments use fear, shame, and control, your nervous system adapts to survive it. Over time, that wiring gets stuck… and even after you leave, your body still reacts like you’re not safe.

That’s religious trauma.

And healing isn’t about trying harder to believe.

It’s about teaching your body that you are safe again.

04/09/2026

Have you ever wanted to participate in research? Here's your chance!

A graduate researcher at the University of Illinois Springfield is developing the first standardized assessment tool for religious and spiritual trauma — and is looking for participants to help val…

04/08/2026

Why It Takes TimeThere is still a limited amount of precise, long-term research on stepfamilies, particularly when it comes to identifying exactly which parenting behaviors lead to the best outcomes for children. Much of what we know is based on patterns rather than clear cause-and-effect conclusion...

04/03/2026

EMDR with Josh Eaves on Fridays. Call us to set up an in person appointment.