Tobey Allen
I'm Tobey Allen, a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 20 years of experience walking alongside through life's biggest transitions. My own path has included more than one reinvention, from a career in graphic design to becoming an art therapist, and that experience shapes how I support clients navigating change today. Whether you're facing a career shift, caring for aging parents, adjusting to chronic pain or illness, or working through grief, I bring both clinical training and lived experience reinventing my own path. I also spent years as a bereavement therapist in hospice care, so I understand grief deeply, both as a clinician and as someone who has sat with families through some of their hardest moments.
My specialties include Cognitive Behavioral therapy, anxiety, grief, art therapy, stress management, mindfulness and guided imagery.
My approach is warm, collaborative, and genuinely non-judgmental. Together we'll work to uncover the patterns keeping you stuck, whether in relationships, at work, within yourself, and build toward a life that feels more balanced and true to who you are.
First session
Our first session intake gives me the basic framework of what brought you to therapy and how I may be of service to you. I will need some history to get a better understanding of your health and wellbeing. Finally, we will collaborate to set up a treatment plan which includes goals and expectations of what you would like to get out of therapy.
Strengths
Having worked as a bereavement therapist in hospice, I understand grief and working with families. I have also worked for a functional restoration program focused on helping clients adjust to chronic pain. Throughout my life, I have had to reinvent myself and rediscover my strengths. Once studying graphic design, I had to pivot to a new career in art therapy. I have a passion to help clients going through a life transition, including midlife and career changes.
Ideal clients
I often work with individuals who are coping with anxiety, relationship issues, grief and loss and life transitions. Furthermore, I am also quite experienced in working with chronic pain, dementia, Parkinson's and cancer, whether it's midlife changes, grief and the stressors of aging parents. I have also helped clients who struggle with codependent and narcissistic relationship patterns learn to set boundaries and effectively communicate in a way that empowers them.
Treatment methods
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I have been using CBT throughout my practice and found much success in helping clients reduce their anxious and depressed moods. You will identify limiting beliefs and cognitive distortions and begin to reframe your thinking and behaviors. I also help you identify your core beliefs and limitations related to your thinking and empower you to think in new ways.
Integrative
My approach is integrative in that I combine techniques and theories from various therapeutic schools. It is based on the client's unique goals, needs and style. I consider the whole person using an evidence based approach including CBT, mindfulness, attachment theory, art therapy, guided imagery and grief support. I help you identify the limiting patterns that keep you stuck so that you can attract the healthy relationships you deserve.
Acceptance and commitment (ACT)
Many of my clients struggle with empty nest issues, midlife crisis and life transitions including job loss, divorce, and health issues. I teach you coping skills to navigate difficult emotions and take steps to align with your values, finding clarity, meaning and a purposeful life.
Grief Therapy
Grief has many faces and is not limited to the death of a loved one. It can stem from any significant loss or life change. Losses can be ambiguous as in the loss of a relationship, health or life path. Some losses are not openly acknowledged or socially validated. I will unpack and explore your history of loss, address spiritual aspects and feelings of guilt related to grief so that you can integrate your experience and find acceptance and peace in your loss. If you have been feeling guilt, anger, exhaustion and sadness I am here to support you so that you are seen, heard and validated. I will often utilize art therapy and mindfulness as tools for insight and healing.
Attachment-based
Challenges in relationship dynamics are often rooted in early caregiver relationships, which impact current behavior and affect the foundation of trust. We can become avoidant, anxious or disorganized in how we relate to others. I explore the patterning in your relationships, combining attachment with CBT, art therapy and more to address your core issues around interpersonal relationships. Together we will identify patterns, change thoughts and feelings which interfere with healthy attachment. Topics for exploration may include boundary setting, codependency, communication skills and narcissist behavior. If you feel stuck in coping with in-laws, siblings, work or social settings or intimate relationships, I provide the tools and coping skills needed to feel confident in your relationships.
Location
Virtual sessions
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Licensed in
- CaliforniaLicense 50245