ZPR Host, Author, Therapist

Cathy Cassani Adams

Cathy is a self-awareness expert focused on parenting and the personal empowerment of women and young girls. She’s a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified Parent Coach, Certified Elementary School Teacher, Certified Yoga Teacher, and she teaches in the Sociology Department at Dominican University and Elmhurst College.

She’s the author of The Self-Aware Parent (2009), The Self-Aware Parent Two (2011), and Living What You Want Your Kids to Learn: The Power of Self-Aware Parenting (2014) which won a Nautilus Award, National Indie Excellence Award, and an International Book Award.

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Be the Change

Philosophy

Live What You Want Your Kids to Learn

Your children don’t want you to be perfect, they want you to be real. They desire a genuine connection combined with mutual respect for self and others. They want to be who they are and feel safe and affirmed in your presence. This sense of safety builds confidence, and this is what allows children to trust themselves and believe in what they can do.

Offering this sense of safety requires our self-awareness. Self-awareness isn’t something we achieve once and for all, but is a daily practice of noticing ourselves. We practice being aware of our feelings and behavior, which in turn allows us to take responsibility for our lives. Instead of focusing on what others do or say, which is completely out of our control, we make choices for ourselves, deciding how to respond and participate. This is freedom, and this is what Gandhi was inferring when he told us to “be the change” we are looking for.

"Offering this sense of safety requires our self-awareness. Self-awareness isn’t something we achieve once and for all, but is a daily practice of noticing ourselves. "Cathy Cassani Adams

Striving to Support & Empower

Areas of Focus

Creating deeper relationships with ourselves and others

SELF-AWARENESS
PARENTING
COUPLEHOOD
FEMALE EMPOWERMENT
COMPASSION & CONNECTION
MINDFULNESS & MEDITATION
YOGA

"If your success is not on your own terms, if it looks good to the world but does not feel good in your heart, it is not success at all."Anna Quindlen

Self-awareness Expert

About Cathy

Cathy Cassani Adams, LCSW, CPC, CYT – Cathy is a self-awareness expert focused on parenting and the personal empowerment of women and young girls. She’s a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified Parent Coach, Certified Elementary School Teacher, Certified Yoga Teacher, and she teaches in the Sociology Department at Dominican University and Elmhurst College. She’s the author of The Self-Aware Parent (2009), The Self-Aware Parent Two (2011), and Living What You Want Your Kids to Learn: The Power of Self-Aware Parenting (2014) which won a Nautilus Award, National Indie Excellence Award, and an International Book Award. For six years she and her husband Todd have hosted Zen Parenting Radio, a top-ten kids and family podcast on iTunes, and they are the creators of the Zen Parenting Conference held in Chicago. Cathy is a sought-after parenting and female empowerment speaker, she created/facilitated a self-awareness program for preadolescent girls called Be U, and she was a Child and Family Therapist/Clinical Educator at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. Cathy is a blogger for The Huffington Post and a former columnist for Chicago Parent Magazine. She’s a frequent guest on WGN Radio and her parent coaching has been the focus of a CBS News Report as well as a Fox News Special Report. She’s been featured several times in Parents Magazine, Newsweek Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, Ebony Magazine, Crain’s Chicago Business, Today’s Chicago Woman, and West Suburban Magazine.
 
 
Sessions, Workshops, Groups

Work with Cathy

Cathy offers in-person sessions for women interested in self-awareness and empowerment, and she offers supervision to therapists+coaches who want support with their practice. Cathy also facilitates a women’s circle and offers in-person and virtual workshops.

  • Sessions

    Women's self-awareness and support for coaches and therapists

  • Workshops

    Self-Awareness for women, marriage and parenting, How to Talk to Kids about Sex and Sexuality

  • Groups

    Keynotes/presentations, panel/discussion facilitation, Women’s Circle

Note: Sessions are one-time, occasional, or every-other month. Sessions are not a substitute for regular therapy. Referrals for regular therapy or coaching can be made during session. All sessions are in-person. If you are interested in a session, contact Cathy for her availability.

Contact Cathy
Invite Cathy

Speaking

Cathy has been offering keynotes, presentations, workshops, breakout sessions, classes, and other speaking engagements for more than 15 years. She is known for her enthusiasm, humor, compassion, and her ability to feel and understand an audience. Topics include:

  • Self-Awareness
  • Parenting
  • Mindfulness
  • Q&A
Invite Cathy
 
Self-Awarness

Cathy's Books

Musings

BLOGS & WRITINGS




"If you surrender completely to the moments as they pass, you live more richly in those moments."Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Books I love & Recommend

Cathy's Library

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Cathy's Favorites

ZPR Podcasts

All Favorites ()
Cathy's Favorities ()
Todd's Favorites ()

Lessons From My Dad- Podcast #380

06/06/2017

Cathy’s dad recently passed away so Cathy and Todd share how he lived and what he taught them. Most importantly why culture literacy leads to a bigger heart and mind, why willingness is the key to a deep and meaningful life, and why we...

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Listen, Allow, Support, Repeat

06/26/2015

Cathy and Todd share a letter from a listener whose son discovers himself through dance, and how this discovery leads to self-aware parenting. It's an inspirational and emotional story about how to create a connected relationship with...

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Curse It, Nurse It, Rehearse It

04/21/2015

When you are struggling, do you curse it, nurse it , and rehearse it? Or do you disperse it and reverse it? Todd and Cathy discuss all of these possibilities, and which choices lead to greater contentment. They also discuss Lionel...

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Outliving Cancer with Tears, Wit, and Grace

03/23/2014

In this compelling interview, our friend Katie Weiss shares her breast cancer experience, starting with the fact that she was diagnosed at 35. Due to her age she is told her lump is probably nothing, but she walks us through the...

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