Licensed to practice in California and accepts 43 insurances. Specializes in Coping Skills, Life Transitions, Peer Relationships and 9 more.
(she/her)
Clients say this provider is
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 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.
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.
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.
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.
Cash - $180 per session
Aetna
Aetna - Allied Benefits
Aetna - ASR Health Benefits
Aetna - Lucent Health
Aetna - Luminare
Aetna - Moda
Aetna - WebTPA
Aetna – HealthEZ
All Savers
Anthem
Arlo
AvMed
Blue Cross
Blue Shield
Carelon Behavioral Health (Commercial)
Centivo
Cigna
Cigna - HealthEZ
Evernorth
Golden Rule
Harvard Pilgrim/UnitedHealthcare
Health Net (Commercial)
IHSS Healthy Workers
Independence Administrators
Independence Blue Cross
L.A. Care Covered
L.A. Care Covered Direct
L.A. Care PASC-SEIU
Optum
OptumHealth Complex Medical Conditions
Oscar
Oxford
Scripps Health Plan
Sharp Health Plan
Surest (formerly Bind)
Sutter Health Plan
Tufts Health/Cigna
United Medical Resources
UnitedHealthcare Life Insurance
UnitedHealthcare Shared Services
UnitedHealthcare StudentResources
UnitedHealthcare/Optum
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.
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.
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 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.
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.
5 ratings with written reviews
March 30, 2026
Tobey was great on getting to understand what my needs are and pointing me in the right direction.
December 19, 2025
Toby was excellent, and this was our first meeting and unfortunately, our last, but she gave me so much information and knowledge to help me move forward in my next steps through my trauma she gave me hope on finding the right person for me and in my four years since my accident I feel she was the first person that truly understood me and truly wanted the best for me. Thank you so much Toby you truly made an impact on me.
December 8, 2025
She was great at helping determine if she was a right fit for what I need from a therapist.