Anna Nokes, LCSW
Eating Disorder & Trauma-Informed Therapy for Neurodivergent, Queer, and Trans Teens & Young Adults
Somatic, Relational, and Lived-Experience-Centered Mental Health Support in Peoria, Illinois & via Telehealth
Therapy That Sees All of You—Because You've Never Been Too Much
If you’re a queer, trans, or nonbinary teen or young adult navigating eating disorders, chronic shame, or trauma, you may feel like therapy has never quite fit you. You’ve likely been told to “just try harder,” mask your neurodivergence, or change your body to feel worthy.
I'm here to offer something different: a therapy space that welcomes your complexity, affirms your identities, and helps you reconnect with your body, your values, and your own deep wisdom.
I have sat on the other side of the room and as a teenager in therapy, I learned that I wanted to spend my life helping others feel less alone. I wouldn’t be who I am without the therapists who have held space for me throughout my life. I am honored that I get to do what I consider my life’s greatest work: holding space for others the way I have had space held for me. When I set on my therapist’s couch at 16, I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
Who I Work With
I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Peoria, Illinois (LCSW #149024417) and I specialize in working with:
Neurodivergent teens and young adults (Autistic, ADHD, OCD, cPTSD, AuDHD)
Queer, trans, and nonbinary clients
Teens (ages 12+), college students, and emerging adults
Clients experiencing eating disorders, body image distress, chronic dissociation, and identity-based trauma
I also work with those navigating value misalignment, religious trauma, relational ruptures, and the grief of being misunderstood in a world that wasn’t built for your brilliance.
My Lived Experience Matters—Because Yours Does Too
As someone who is neurodivergent (AuDHD), queer, nonbinary, and in ongoing recovery from eating disorder and trauma experiences, I bring lived experience to this work—not as the focus, but as a grounding in deep empathy and attunement. I know what it’s like to sit on the other side of the room, wondering if anyone will really get it.
That’s why I’ve shaped my practice to be identity-affirming, anti-pathologizing, and rooted in values-based care—so you never have to separate who you are from the healing you're doing.
My Approach: Relational, Somatic, and Parts-Informed Therapy
✧ Relational Therapy: You Heal in Connection
The foundation of our work is relational therapy—because research and lived experience agree: healing happens in relationship. I believe the connection between client and therapist is not just a tool but a central ingredient in transformation. Together, we’ll co-create safety, trust, and space for authenticity—especially if you've experienced disconnection, invalidation, or rupture in past relationships.
✧ Somatic Therapy & the Trauma Resiliency Model™
I help clients reconnect with their bodies in a way that honors their trauma history, sensory needs, and neurotype. Using somatic approaches like the Trauma Resiliency Model™ (TRM), we explore how the nervous system holds stress, fear, or shutdown—and learn to regulate through sensation, movement, and resource-based tools. This helps build body-based resilience without re-traumatizing or forcing unwanted exposure.
✧ Parts Work (IFS-Inspired): Every Part of You Is Welcome
Many clients—especially those with eating disorders, trauma, or neurodivergence—feel like they’re “at war” with themselves. Through parts work, we make space for the younger, protective, critical, or scared parts of you that are just trying to help you survive. We learn to offer compassion, not control, and develop an internal relationship rooted in self-trust and self-leadership.
✧ Attachment-Based Therapy
Many struggles with food, body, and identity stem from attachment wounds—times when your needs weren’t met or your authentic self was not accepted. We’ll explore how these patterns show up in current relationships and begin to rewrite your internal narrative from one of survival to one of secure connection.
✧ Living Aligned with Your Values
Whether you’re deconstructing internalized oppression, healing from religious or family trauma, or learning to make decisions from self-trust instead of fear—therapy can help you reconnect with your core values and live from a place of clarity and agency. Many clients I work with are navigating life transitions, masking burnout, and gender exploration—and are looking to finally build a life that feels like theirs.