Hi, I’m Suzy!

For five years I worked as a speech-language pathologist in adult medical rehabilitation, providing cognitive communication therapy to people who had experienced strokes and brain injuries, as well as people living with dementia and Parkinson’s disease.

In 2020, I moved into private practice and shifted my focus. Instead of working with people recovering from a recent injury, I started coaching adults who are chronically busy and disorganized, and who have often felt that way their whole lives. That includes adults with ADHD, autism, executive functioning changes from concussion or menopause, and people with no diagnosis at all.

I also have my own attention and sensory processing differences, so a lot of this work is familiar from the inside. I’m not coaching from a textbook. I’m coaching from a brain that works a lot like the brains of the people I work with.

Here’s what I’ve come to believe after all these years. People don’t struggle with executive functioning because they aren’t trying. Most of my clients are trying harder than anyone around them realizes. The problem is that the usual advice treats strategy as the whole answer, when your state and your self-talk matter just as much. My work is helping people understand how their own brain works and build supports that actually fit it, rather than forcing themselves into systems designed for someone else.

I’m always learning. I read constantly, I take continuing education courses on cognition and executive functioning, and I’m a certified organizational specialist, trained in Solution-Focused Brief Therapy and the Seeing My Time executive functioning curriculum. The full list of my certifications and training is on my FAQ page if you’re curious.

All services provided by Suzy Carbrey LLC are coaching, not clinical evaluation or treatment. I am a licensed speech-language pathologist, and that background shapes how I coach, but coaching is not speech therapy. If you’re looking for a formal evaluation or treatment, let me know and I can refer you to a qualified clinician.

When I’m not working, you’ll find me with my husband and son. I’ve served on my local library board, I take Spanish classes, and I like to cook. I’m from Wichita, Kansas, and I’ve lived in the Chicago area since 2015. What I love about it here is that there’s always something to do. Whether I want to go into the city or get lost in a forest, neither is too far away.

I love being outdoors, so I hike, bike, and kayak. Years ago I adopted part of my local forest preserve as a way to give back to my community and to keep enjoying it.