Sadie Salazar is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and the Chief Operations Officer at Sage Therapy. Sadie was drawn to the vision of creating an organization where community, connection, and relational practice are embodied at every level, and joined Sage shortly after it was founded. In her role, she combines her clinical background with organizational leadership to support the ongoing mission of building a practice that nurtures clinicians and delivers exceptional quality care. 

Sadie’s role focuses on forging connections through clinical care, community partnerships, operational management, and cross functional collaboration. She seeks to create and uphold a culture that values transparency, vulnerability, and innovation. She is driven by the transformative and healing power of relationships, bringing this lens to both her clinical and leadership roles. She is widely consulted on matters related to clinical training and development, trauma and attachment, stress management, workplace well-being, organizational management, and burnout prevention. She provides clinical consultation and supervision that centers cultural humility and trauma informed practice. 

Sadie’s clinical work began in the nonprofit sector, where she focused on working with marginalized communities, addressing community violence, and providing mental health treatment for complex trauma. She has worked with families, couples, and individuals across the lifespan, and has particular interests in complex trauma, life transitions, relationships and relational patterns, chronic stress, identity development, gender and sexuality, and family of origin and attachment wounds. Sadie applies an integrated approach informed by psychodynamic, attachment, and polyvagal theories, Internal Family Systems, and DBT. 

Sadie holds a BS from Miami University and a Master’s in Social Work from Boston College. She completed clinical training at the Justice Resource Institute in Boston,  completed her postgraduate fellowship with the Chicago Center for Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy, is a former EMT-B, and has worked in juvenile justice, residential treatment, community mental health, EAP, and outpatient settings. Sadie is trained in EMDR and is licensed to practice in Illinois and California. 

Outside of her role at Sage, Sadie remains engaged in the Chicago community by lending time and leadership to local initiatives, volunteer organizations, and as an executive board member of Erie Neighborhood House.

Founder and CEO of Sage Therapy. Millie launched Sage in 2020 with the vision of building a practice grounded in clinical excellence, compassion, and community. Above all, she aimed to create a truly supportive place for therapists to work, grow, and feel valued. As both a clinician and a leader, Millie has always prioritized cultivating an environment where clients and clinicians feel heard, respected, and empowered to shape their own stories.

With a background as a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, Millie has grown Sage into a thriving, multi-clinician practice that provides individual, couples, family, and group therapy across a wide range of specialties. She has also expanded Sage’s offerings to include workshops, psychoeducation, and mental health consulting. Although she no longer sees clients in the same capacity, her clinical training continues to guide her leadership and her approach to organizational wellbeing.

Today, Millie spends most of her time strengthening Sage’s internal structure. She focuses on cultivating a workplace where therapists feel supported, developing sustainable systems, and building a culture rooted in transparency, connection, and growth. She leads the organization’s strategic vision, supports the leadership and operations teams, and works to ensure that Sage remains a meaningful and nourishing place for clinicians to practice. In addition to her internal work, Millie also speaks and consults with companies, schools, and nonprofits on workplace wellbeing, leadership resilience, and mental health culture.

Clinically, Millie’s approach integrates evidence-based practices such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Narrative Therapy, and the Gottman Method. She also draws from psychodynamic, relational, and person-centered perspectives. Her work is grounded in a trauma-informed lens that emphasizes safety, connection, and the healing power of understanding one’s story. She is deeply influenced by the research of Dr. Bessel van der Kolk and Brené Brown, whose work shapes her philosophy on trauma, vulnerability, and wholehearted leadership.

Millie holds a BA in Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master’s in Counseling with a specialization in Forensic Psychology from Adler University. She is licensed as a Professional Counselor in both Illinois and Indiana.