Graduate Intern

John “Chicago” Zurawski

John “Chicago” Zurawski is a graduate student in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Naropa University and a counseling intern. His approach to counseling is grounded in mindfulness, compassion, authenticity, and a deep respect for the lived experience of every person who enters the therapeutic space.

Chicago brings a unique combination of professional training and lived experience to his work. After experiencing more than two decades of incarceration and building a life in long-term recovery, he developed a particular passion for working with people impacted by the criminal justice system, trauma, addiction, reentry, and major life transitions. These experiences have shaped his belief that people are far more than the most difficult chapters of their lives and that meaningful change becomes possible when individuals are treated with dignity, accountability, compassion, and respect.

His clinical interests include trauma, stress and anxiety, addiction and recovery, mindfulness-based counseling, reentry, and working with justice-involved individuals. He has facilitated stress-reduction and mindfulness groups with incarcerated and justice-involved populations and previously completed his counseling practicum with the Boulder County Justice Program.

Chicago is trained in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction and has spent years exploring mindfulness, meditation, Buddhist psychology, Gestalt therapy, and trauma-informed approaches to healing. He is also the creator of Stress Reduction Reality Therapy (SRRT), a mindfulness-based approach that uses practical tools such as Stop–Breathe–Go to help people recognize automatic reactions, reconnect with the present moment, and make more intentional choices.

Chicago views counseling as a collaborative relationship rather than a process of one person “fixing” another. He strives to create a space where clients can speak openly, examine patterns without shame, develop practical coping skills, and discover their own capacity for resilience and change.

Outside of his clinical work, Chicago enjoys hiking Colorado's trails, practicing mindfulness, spending time in the outdoors, and exploring life with his Goldendoodle, Millie. His long-term professional goal is to become a Licensed Professional Counselor specializing in trauma therapy and counseling for people transitioning from incarceration back into their families and communities.

Approaches & Focus