Motivational Interviewing · A collaborative approach
Being of two minds about change is normal. It is also the starting point.
Motivational Interviewing is a conversation style built for ambivalence. Rather than talking you into change, your clinician helps you hear your own reasons for it, which is what makes the change hold.
What it helps with
When Motivational Interviewing helps
It fits any moment where you know what you might do but cannot get moving on it.
- Feeling stuck between changing and staying put
- Habits you have tried to change before
- Substance use and drinking you are reconsidering
- Health changes like sleep, exercise, or medication
- Goals that keep stalling out
- Starting therapy while unsure it will help
Your reasons, not a lecture
When someone pushes us to change, most of us push back, even when we agree with them. Motivational Interviewing works with that instead of against it. Your clinician asks, listens, and reflects what they hear, so the argument for change comes from you rather than at you.
It is direct without being pushy, and it is brief by design. Motivational Interviewing is often woven into other work rather than used on its own, helping build the momentum that the rest of therapy then puts to use.
Motivational Interviewing often opens the door to other work, whether that is CBT, ACT, or medication management.
Our approach
How Motivational Interviewing works at LodeStone
A whole-picture, coordinated path, not a one-size-fits-all plan.
Say it out loud without judgment
You talk through both sides honestly, what change would cost and what staying the same is already costing, with no one pushing an agenda.
Find your own reasons
Your clinician reflects back what they hear, and the reasons that genuinely matter to you get clearer and harder to ignore.
Turn it into a plan
When you are ready, and only then, you shape a concrete first step you actually believe you can take.
Ambivalence is not a lack of willpower, and it is not a reason to wait. Get answers and we will match you with the right clinician.
We provide this care in person at our Hinsdale and Woodstock offices, and by telehealth across Illinois. We are in-network with BCBS PPO, Blue Choice, Aetna, Medicare, and United Behavioral Health, and we verify your benefits before your first visit.