Practitioner record · Checked 7 Oct 2026
Andrea Knepper has been in practice 5 years and is licensed in Illinois. Andrea lists stress, Anxiety, trauma and abuse and grief among 11 subjects on the BetterHelp roster.
Everything below is either quoted from Andrea's own BetterHelp listing, taken from public licensing records, or written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such. Nothing here is an availability promise, a review, or a rating.
01 · Who Andrea works with
Andrea lists 5 specialisms and 6 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Andrea chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.
02 · In Andrea's own words
Reproduced in full and unedited - not summarised, not tightened, not rewritten in a house voice.
I am the founder and former Executive Director of Chicago Adventure Therapy (CAT), an organization that works with marginalized youth using outdoor sports and nature activities for healing. I directed the organization from its founding in 2006 until January of 2025, when I handed the leadership to the next generation.
I earned my BA in Music from Oberlin College in 1995 and my MSW from Loyola University in 2002. In addition to 20 years creating and leading CAT, I have a broad range of clinical experience as well as sea kayaking and wilderness guiding experience. Between 1995 and 2004 I worked as a case manager with people experiencing homelessness, a therapist, and a sea kayak instructor and wilderness guide. As a coach and a clinician, I believe that learning and growth should be fun, challenging, accessible and engaging.
In the summer of 2019, I took a sabbatical from CAT and paddled my sea kayak along the Pacific Coast of the continental United States from Canada to Mexico. I wrangled myriad detailed logistics and faced fear every day, paddling 1508 miles over three months. I came away from that expedition with an unshakable sense of gratitude and a renewed belief in the power of natural beauty to change us and heal us.
In my next chapter, I continue to work in the potent intersection of justice and the outdoors. I'm also going back to my roots, providing therapy again. My 20+ years providing Adventure Therapy has made me a more creative and grounded clinician. My 25+ years working in marginalized communities has made me a clinician with deeper empathy and an understanding that oppression and discrimination affect our mental in very real ways. My 25+ years in the field has made me able to hold people accountable for their own behavior, even when the world hands them a raw deal.
I look forward to seeing how we can work together to make life more manageable for you.
Andrea Knepper, on the BetterHelp listing · read 7 Oct 2026
03 · How Andrea works
These are the clinical methods Andrea lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Andrea's - a general explanation of what each method is, so the list means something before you have spoken to anybody. They are not a claim about how Andrea runs a session.
04 · What happens next
Andrea practises through BetterHelp, so the route in is BetterHelp's. This is that sequence, written by Maker Therapy from the platform's published process - not a description of Andrea's own practice, and not a promise about how quickly anything happens.
BetterHelp opens with a set of questions about what you are dealing with, what you want from therapy, and any preferences on the therapist. You are not booking Andrea at this point.
BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Andrea is a step you have to take. There is a field for requesting a specific therapist during sign-up, and you can switch afterwards from your account. Starting from a link on this page does not by itself assign you to Andrea.
You will be offered somebody else rather than put on a waitlist. Worth knowing, because it is easy to assume a match is the person you asked for.
A first session is typically history and orientation: what brought you, what has been tried, what you want to be different. It is also where the questions in the next section belong.
Changing therapist on BetterHelp does not need a reason. A first session that does not click is common and is not a verdict on therapy. That option existing is the main practical difference between a platform and a private practice.
05 · Before you commit
Built from what Andrea actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Andrea's - Andrea has not seen them and is under no obligation to answer any of them.
“How do you decide when someone is ready to work on a traumatic memory itself?”
Pacing is the biggest safety question in trauma work. A clear, unhurried answer here matters more than any credential.
“How do you handle the gap between sessions if something comes up?”
On BetterHelp this varies a great deal by therapist. Better to know the rhythm now than to discover it on a bad week.
06 · Practical details
07 · Provenance
Andrea's name, credential, state, subjects, approaches and biography are read from BetterHelp's therapist roster, which Maker Therapy re-reads once a day; this page reflects the reading taken on 7 Oct 2026. The licence number and NPI are cross-checked against public registers.
The plain-English method descriptions, the first-session walkthrough and the questions are written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such wherever they appear.
Maker Therapy is not BetterHelp, does not take bookings, and has not met Andrea. There are no reviews or ratings on this page because we have no way to verify one. If you start therapy through a link here, we may be paid a commission - it does not change your price and it does not affect who appears here or in what order.
Something on this page wrong or out of date? Report it and it will be checked against the source.
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