Tamara Hubbard, MA, LCPC
(Therapist. Content Creator. Relationship Builder)
Currently working on her first book, Tamara is represented by literary agent Jennifer Chen Tran at the Bradford Literary Agency. "Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." - Arthur Ashe |
Tamara is a family therapy-trained Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) offering therapy services through her private practice focused on women, motherhood, life changes/transitions, and anxiety/stress management.
Additionally, Tamara helps those managing allergic diseases, especially parents/caregivers, develop a workable mindset and balance between overwhelm and quality of life. She primarily utilizes a mindfulness-based behavioral approach known as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, but also incorporates other modalities to teach her clients skills that support their own well-being. Tamara created the Food Allergy Counselor website, which houses the Food Allergy Counselor Directory, Exploring Food Allergy Families podcast, and additional food allergy behavioral health resources to fill an unmet need within the food allergy community. A relationship builder at heart, Tamara is always looking for opportunities to help build and enhance alliances, or take part in projects that lead to positive impacts for patients, communities, and organizations. |
To learn more about Tamara's general counseling, allergy-related counseling,
or consulting services, visit her private practice website: www.TamaraHubbardlcpc.com
Clinical Counseling Training & Skills
Tamara is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, with an undergraduate degree in Education and a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from Adler School of Professional Psychology. With over 16 years in the counseling field, she's worked with clients of all ages, and held an additional Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC) certification until 2014. She has worked in a variety of levels of care, including in hospital (inpatient/outpatient), partial and intensive outpatient programs, community agency, and private practice settings. Therefore, she has the clinical training that allows her to effectively help clients make improvements to their mental health, families, and relationships, whether they're managing food allergies/health conditions or not. Tamara's counseling style can be described as supportive and compassionate, yet solution-focused and strengths-based. She aims to help clients understand/accept their emotions while also focusing on skill-building. She utilizes a variety of counseling methodologies, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Family Systems, and Solution-Focused theories to assist clients in building skills that help with coping, decision-making, and growing resilience/an empowered mindset. Tamara provides these services via her private practice (in-person and telehealth in IL), and is also available for consultations, educational workshops and speaking engagements.
She is a member of the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS), the American Counseling Association (ACA), and an Allied Health Professional member of both the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) and the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (ACAAI), where she also serves as a member of the Allied Health Committee. Tamara is also a founding Community Advisory Board Member for the Center for Food Allergy & Asthma Research (CFAAR), part of the Institute for Public Health/Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.
Tamara is currently working on her first book, and is represented by literary agent Jennifer Chen Tran at the Bradford Literary Agency.
(To find out more about her counseling/consulting services or workshops, or to reach out about appointments, refer to her Psychology Today profile, or her counseling & consulting website at www.TamaraHubbardLCPC.com).
Counseling & Therapy-Related Interviews or Projects
Social Media Presence & Projects
[Please note: Tamara does not connect or engage with her clients online; content posted online is general & educational in nature]
Food Allergy and Allergic Disease-Specific
Food Allergy Knowledge: Tamara is the mom of a child managing a food allergy. Therefore, she gets it. She knows firsthand what it's like to navigate life with this chronic illness as part of the family system. She understands the daily nuances, the overwhelming feelings, and the need to find reputable food allergy information in order to create action plans and resilience. After identifying a gap in accessibility to food allergy-knowledgeable clinical counseling professionals, Tamara set out to create a remedy. As such, she created the Food Allergy Counselor Directory in 2018, the original state-by-state listing of food allergy-knowledgeable licensed clinical behavioral health clinicians in the US, which has since expanded to include other countries. The Food Allergy Counselor website houses the Food Allergy Behavioral Health resources page, a blog exploring related topics, a variety of therapeutic worksheets focused on allergy anxiety and psychosocial impacts, and now a podcast called "Exploring Food Allergy Families". Tamara is the original founder of the Food Allergy Counseling Professionals Network, which transitioned into the professional networking group known as the Food Allergy Behavioral Health Networking Group. Additionally, she is passionate about creating unique therapeutic content for the community and healthcare professionals, highlighting food allergy mental health, empowerment, and resilience, focusing on patient/family advocacy, and educating fellow therapists or doctors about working with food allergic families.
Food Allergy Advocacy/Speaking: In 2013, Tamara proposed recognizing Food Allergy Awareness Week at a village meeting, which resulted in her town's Mayor officially acknowledging it through a proclamation. Those advocacy efforts helped her local library coordinate a food allergy awareness community education session during that same week. She is also the creator and leader of an online support group for food allergy trial families.
Tamara regularly presents at various allergy industry conferences, primarily focused on food allergy mental health and family systems, including the 2018 & 2019 Midwest FACES Conference at Lurie Children's Hospital and multiple FAACT events. Additionally, she's presented workshops to food allergy support groups, and primer workshops about working with food allergic clients at clinical counseling networking events.
Food Allergy-Related Interviews, Articles & Projects
Content Creation:
Experience Within Schools
Tamara has experience volunteering and working within school systems. Her previous roles include: former educator, high school Career Advisor, PTO President, PTO committee chair, and district referendum committee member. These positions have allowed her to work closely with a variety of staff, including nurses, teachers, principals, and administrators, including superintendents.
Tamara is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, with an undergraduate degree in Education and a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from Adler School of Professional Psychology. With over 16 years in the counseling field, she's worked with clients of all ages, and held an additional Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC) certification until 2014. She has worked in a variety of levels of care, including in hospital (inpatient/outpatient), partial and intensive outpatient programs, community agency, and private practice settings. Therefore, she has the clinical training that allows her to effectively help clients make improvements to their mental health, families, and relationships, whether they're managing food allergies/health conditions or not. Tamara's counseling style can be described as supportive and compassionate, yet solution-focused and strengths-based. She aims to help clients understand/accept their emotions while also focusing on skill-building. She utilizes a variety of counseling methodologies, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Family Systems, and Solution-Focused theories to assist clients in building skills that help with coping, decision-making, and growing resilience/an empowered mindset. Tamara provides these services via her private practice (in-person and telehealth in IL), and is also available for consultations, educational workshops and speaking engagements.
She is a member of the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS), the American Counseling Association (ACA), and an Allied Health Professional member of both the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) and the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (ACAAI), where she also serves as a member of the Allied Health Committee. Tamara is also a founding Community Advisory Board Member for the Center for Food Allergy & Asthma Research (CFAAR), part of the Institute for Public Health/Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.
Tamara is currently working on her first book, and is represented by literary agent Jennifer Chen Tran at the Bradford Literary Agency.
(To find out more about her counseling/consulting services or workshops, or to reach out about appointments, refer to her Psychology Today profile, or her counseling & consulting website at www.TamaraHubbardLCPC.com).
Counseling & Therapy-Related Interviews or Projects
- Quoted in Forbes article by Dr. Jessi Gold: "We Need to Talk About Another Pandemic Mental Health Crisis: Therapist Burnout"
- Quoted in SELF Magazine article by Dr. Jessi Gold: "10 Common Return-to-Work Concerns - And How to Mentally Prepare for Them"
Social Media Presence & Projects
[Please note: Tamara does not connect or engage with her clients online; content posted online is general & educational in nature]
- Currently, Tamara is active on social media in a professional capacity. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter (@TherapistTamara), or Instagram (@TherapistTamara). You can also follow Food Allergy Counselor updates via the FAC Facebook page, Twitter (@FACounselor) and Instagram (@FoodAllergyCounselor).
- Tamara created/hosts the podcast, Exploring Food Allergy Families. You can find it on Apple Podcasts or any podcast app. Learn more at www.FoodAllergyFamilies.com
- From 2009-2011, Tamara was a "mom blogger" known as The (Un)Experienced Mom, writing about her experiences transitioning from parenting one child to parenting two children.
- Tamara was featured on Mom Talk Radio with Maria Bailey as part of a round-table discussion on spending quality family time together.
- Served as the Chicagoland blogging correspondent for ConAgra Foundation's National "Child Hunger Ends Here" campaign in 2010, which included the support of celebrities such as the Desperate Housewives cast members & David Arquette.
Food Allergy and Allergic Disease-Specific
Food Allergy Knowledge: Tamara is the mom of a child managing a food allergy. Therefore, she gets it. She knows firsthand what it's like to navigate life with this chronic illness as part of the family system. She understands the daily nuances, the overwhelming feelings, and the need to find reputable food allergy information in order to create action plans and resilience. After identifying a gap in accessibility to food allergy-knowledgeable clinical counseling professionals, Tamara set out to create a remedy. As such, she created the Food Allergy Counselor Directory in 2018, the original state-by-state listing of food allergy-knowledgeable licensed clinical behavioral health clinicians in the US, which has since expanded to include other countries. The Food Allergy Counselor website houses the Food Allergy Behavioral Health resources page, a blog exploring related topics, a variety of therapeutic worksheets focused on allergy anxiety and psychosocial impacts, and now a podcast called "Exploring Food Allergy Families". Tamara is the original founder of the Food Allergy Counseling Professionals Network, which transitioned into the professional networking group known as the Food Allergy Behavioral Health Networking Group. Additionally, she is passionate about creating unique therapeutic content for the community and healthcare professionals, highlighting food allergy mental health, empowerment, and resilience, focusing on patient/family advocacy, and educating fellow therapists or doctors about working with food allergic families.
Food Allergy Advocacy/Speaking: In 2013, Tamara proposed recognizing Food Allergy Awareness Week at a village meeting, which resulted in her town's Mayor officially acknowledging it through a proclamation. Those advocacy efforts helped her local library coordinate a food allergy awareness community education session during that same week. She is also the creator and leader of an online support group for food allergy trial families.
Tamara regularly presents at various allergy industry conferences, primarily focused on food allergy mental health and family systems, including the 2018 & 2019 Midwest FACES Conference at Lurie Children's Hospital and multiple FAACT events. Additionally, she's presented workshops to food allergy support groups, and primer workshops about working with food allergic clients at clinical counseling networking events.
- 2021/2022 tentative speaking & project schedule:
- (2021) Panel member for Zestfull's Teen Allergy Mental Health webinar
- (2021) FACES in a Flash Conference
- (2022) Food Allergy Conference for Education & Science (FACES)
- (2022) American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) Conference
- (2022) National webinar for largest allergy advocacy organization
- Multiple allergy support group workshops/webinars
- Presentations to allergy/immunology healthcare teams at multiple hospitals
- Various podcast and article interviews
- National allergy education project
Food Allergy-Related Interviews, Articles & Projects
Content Creation:
- Created the Food Allergy Counselor Directory: Listing of allergy-knowledgeable counseling providers by area
- Created the Exploring Food Allergy Families podcast: Find/listen/subscribe from your favorite podcast app
- Continued creating various therapeutic interactive worksheets specific to psychosocial aspects of food allergies
- Most popular blog articles: 5 Reminders for Parents of Kids with Food Allergy-Related Anxiety (1.1k shares), Coping with Food Allergy Tragedies (1k shares), The Emotional Side of Food Allergy Treatments (400 shares)
- Allergic Living magazine - authored (2) articles in their electronic Food Allergy Anxiety Guide
- Food allergy anxiety article published in Coping with Allergies & Asthma Fall/Winter 2019-2020 edition
- Food allergy parenting journey article shared via Scary Mommy (Scary Mommy has over 4 million followers)
- Interviewed for article in American Counseling Association's magazine, Counseling Today: Supporting Clients Through the Anxiety and Exhaustion of Food Allergies
- Interviewed for article in Nature: Food Allergies: The Psychological Toll
- Interviewed for article in Romper: Food Allergies Sometimes Come With Social Isolation — Here's Some Good News On That
- Interviewed for article in NPR: 'Extend A Little Grace' — Navigating Food Allergies And Sensitivities At Thanksgiving
- Interviewed for article in Business Insider: Upcoming Peanut Allergy Treatments Available in 2019
- Interviewed by Esther Landhuis for various articles:
- "Why Parents Are Turning to a Controversial Treatment for Food Allergies" (Undark.org, August 2019)
- "Food Allergies Can Trigger Stress & Anxiety" (Science News for Students, Feb. 2020)
- "New Success in Treating Allergies to Peanuts & Other Foods" (Science News for Students, Feb. 2020)
- "What's New in Food Allergy Etiquette" (Real Simple magazine - hard copy & online, June 2020)
- "Allergists Can Fight Misinformation by Anticipating Sources of Confusion and Engaging Patients with Facts and Curiosity" (Medscape, November 2021)
- Guest on Psychologists Off the Clock: Ep. 222 "Living With Food Allergies with Tamara Hubbard"
- Guest on (2) episodes of allergist, Dr. Alice Hoyt's podcast, Food Allergy & Your Kiddo to discuss navigating allergy anxiety using acceptance/mindfulness, with tips for parents and kids
- Guest on Mighty Parenting Podcast episode #135: Emotional Support for Managing Allergies in Teens
- Guest on allergist Dr. Jason Lee's podcast, talking about the unmet need for psychosocial support and psycho-education in allergy care, how clinical counseling providers can fill that gap, and the work she's doing to encourage a collaborative care approach
- Guest on Allergic Living's "This Allergic Life" podcast discussing COVID-19 anxiety/stress for food allergic families with host Jen Jobrack
- Listed on Spokin's 2019 Top 100 Women in Food Allergy List
- Other notable mentions via The Land of Can & Food ASC
- In 2018, took part in an incredible nationwide NBC Universal/Comcast-affiliated food allergy education project
Experience Within Schools
Tamara has experience volunteering and working within school systems. Her previous roles include: former educator, high school Career Advisor, PTO President, PTO committee chair, and district referendum committee member. These positions have allowed her to work closely with a variety of staff, including nurses, teachers, principals, and administrators, including superintendents.
feedback & testimonials
"Your page has truly been an inspiration to me and has helped me to deal with some of my fears and not allowing them to stop my child from experiencing life. I’m a work in progress, but you should know your work is wonderful and is really impacting lives!"
-Food allergy mom and behavioral healthcare professional
"Our food allergy group had a truly amazing consultation with Tamara last night. She is a great speaker and all our minds and hearts were full of new empowered information and tools. She’s the real deal. A true helping professional."
-Food Allergy Support Group Leader
"Tamara is such a gift to the food allergy world. 99 percent of living with food allergies is about quality of life but few in the medical field are able to offer this resource. I can’t wait to follow her journey as she continues to influence the world.."
-Therapist and food allergy parent
"Tamara’s professional background as a therapist and personal experience as a food allergy parent is the perfect combo for understanding how to address mental wellness around food allergies. My preschool aged kiddo with severe food allergies opened up about his fears and anxiety over the possibility of having a severe allergic reaction. Tamara strategized and worked with me on a game plan on how to address and calm those fears. Her multifaceted approach was spot on. The worry and fear my kiddo felt has dissipated. Tamara also has a history of driving positive change for the children in our community. Our food allergy affected family is very excited that she is channeling her talent and energy into this cause. We appreciate Tamara and all that she has done to help us is more than she’ll ever know."
-Food allergy parent
Connect with Tamara via her counseling website,
Facebook, Twitter, email or Psychology Today:
Facebook, Twitter, email or Psychology Today:
Website Disclaimer Statement: Tamara Hubbard, MA, LCPC is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor. However, she does not provide counseling to individuals via this website or to those that are not her clients. This website does not provide medical, legal, or specific counseling advice. The purpose of this website is to share company information, as well as general resources. Information read here should not be used in lieu of seeking professional counseling or medical advice offline. Please consult with your allergist, doctor, or counselor for information specific to your situation. All information provided here and taken from this website or blog should be used at your own risk. Unless otherwise noted, the owner of this website is the legal copyright holder of all material on this website. Others cannot use it to reprint or publish without the owner's written consent. The owner reserves the right to change the focus on this site, shut it down, or change the terms of use at her own discretion. (Copyright 2018-2021).
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