Food Allergy Counseling
Therapy for Food Allergy Anxiety and Food Allergy Parents
For those managing food allergies and allergic diseases, counseling with an allergy-informed behavioral healthcare provider can be very beneficial.
Here are common reasons adults and parents reach out to me for food allergy counseling:
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As an adult or parent, you find it challenging to cope with the food allergy diagnosis and want to find a way to accept the diagnosis so you're not in constant struggle with sadness and anger.
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Maybe you find yourself struggling with excessive food allergy-related anxiety or worry, especially after a recent anaphylactic reaction or before an oral food challenge appointment.
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You might feel as if your life experiences need to be limited because of the food allergy, and you find yourself living with intense fear and anxiety that keeps you from enjoying things you'd like to experience, such as eating out at restaurants and traveling.
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Perhaps you need guidance on navigating family gatherings and social scenarios, developing self-advocacy within your child, and/or communicating your food allergy rules to others.
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Maybe you're undergoing oral food challenges and/or oral immunotherapy for yourself or your child, and are feeling very anxious before or throughout the process.
Food Allergy Counseling with Tamara
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Food allergy counseling is for adults 18+ and parents or caregivers; (I do not work with children or teens)
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Counseling sessions are 50-60 minutes long and conducted virtually; see the What to Expect section for more details
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Together, we will identify what will help you feel more adjusted to yours or your child's allergy diagnosis
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We will explore how to best help you refocus on living a full life even with food allergies or allergic conditions
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We will develop your personalized toolkit, filled with mindfulness skills, coping tools, and mindset strategies
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You'll walk away from our work together feeling more empowered and able to navigate life with allergies!
Why Work with Tamara
As a food allergy mom traveling a similar path, I truly understand how you're feeling. Therefore, from the start of our work together, you'll feel understood, and your very real thoughts and emotions will be validated.
As an allied health member of both the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, and the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology who presents internationally on allergy mental health and emotional wellness, I stay on top of best practices in allergy and immunology, and have relationships with many allergists and allied healthcare providers. Therefore, I have deep knowledge of IgE-mediated food allergy and related allergic conditions, which means I can help you process allergy information and develop clarifying questions for your health care team.
As a clinical counselor with more than 20 years of clinical experience and a graduate degree in Marriage and Family Therapy, I understand mental health conditions, lifestyle adjustments, and their impacts on family systems. Therefore, I am able to focus not only on individual therapeutic needs, but also the needs of the entire family system, even when not working with the whole family.
Using various therapeutic approaches, I aim to help allergic clients build skills that allow them to find a balance between allergy anxiety and a meaningful quality of life. The primary modalities used include:
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Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) - Focuses on increasing psychological flexibility to allow people to act in accordance with their values, even during stressful and challenging moments in life.
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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) - Focuses on identifying and adjusting unhelpful thoughts, feelings and actions, and can include exposure therapy work to decrease intensity of anxiety and fears.
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Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) - Goal-directed collaborative approach which incorporates Positive Psychology principles and practices;.
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Systems/Family Systems Theory - Focuses on problem-solving through the lens of relationships, dynamics and patterns that exist within families.
I'm looking forward to working together!
Food Allergy Resources Created By Me
Let's Connect!
Interested in working together? Reach out via this contact form to get the process started!
Therapy Services: IL residents only
Consulting Services: In any state