Tamara Hubbard, LCPC

12/22/2025

What’s in a word?

A lot!

Words can carry lots of significance and meaning. They can remind us of people, places, memories, and things that matter.

That’s why each year, I choose at least one guiding word to help keep me grounded in all aspects of my life. To help me move forward towards what matters most to me, even when life gets challenging.

As I consider what my guiding word for 2026 will be, I’m encouraging you to do the same.

➡️ What word will help you say “yes” to what deserves your energy, and “no” to things that don’t?

➡️ What word will remind you what’s worth focusing on during challenging and chaotic times?

➡️ What word will help you live the life you want to?

Some examples of guiding words that might feel like a good fit are:

❤️ Balance
❤️ Bravery
❤️ Believe
❤️ Compassion
❤️ Connection
❤️ Courage
❤️ Dedication
❤️ Flexibility
❤️ Gratitude
❤️ Grounded
❤️ Kindness
❤️ Mindful
❤️ Purposeful
❤️ Presence
❤️ Strength
❤️ Trust

Enjoy the process of figuring out what word will help guide you through 2026! I’ll be sharing my word in the new year.

And if you’re a woman, mom, or allergy parent in IL, FL, or OH looking for support in 2026, I look forward to connecting and working with you!

12/05/2025

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed my Facebook feed was filled with people in my area talking about how the Northern Lights would be visible again within minutes.

Growing up in the Midwest, I don’t ever remember being able to see them this far south! So when I was lucky enough to see them earlier this year, I figured that was probably the only time I’d ever get to see them from where I live.

But then it was happening again! ✨

Even though I was busy with dishes and other chores that needed to get done after a long day of work, I knew I needed to pause and head outside to see the Northern Lights again.

Sure, I had already seen them before, so did it really matter to see them again?

I’d argue, yes, and here’s why…

✨ Pausing to observe beauty like this - which doesn’t happen often - helps you reconnect with so many feelings in the midst of the daily grind and chaos on the world. Feelings such as gratitude, awe, and peace.

✨ It’s good to practice the willingness to pause and pivot when something worthy of your attention happens - something that can pull your mind away from future-focused worries, swirling thoughts about past painful experiences, and bring you back to the present and that very moment in time.

For those few minutes that I stood there observing that beautiful sight, the world felt still and peaceful…and I noticed that my mind and body felt calm and grounded.

I share this experience as a reminder to us all (and yes, even to us therapists) to grab these moments that can gift us with the feelings we don’t always find during our busy, non-stop world.

Sure, we can choose to not pause for them or say “we’ll take a look next time”, but then we rob ourselves of the beautiful moments we don’t often get enough of. So grab them when you can!

💬 What sights and experiences have you paused for lately that have left you feeling calm, grounded, and grateful?

11/26/2025

🎉 EXCITING NEWS: I'm now able to offer virtual therapy services to those in Ohio, as well as Illinois and Florida!

My practice focuses on working with women, moms, and food allergy parents. Here's an overview of how you can work with me...

1. Telehealth/virtual therapy (for those in IL, FL, OH): I work with women and moms to help them build skills to navigate anxiety and stress management, parenting and relationship challenges, and life transitions, and also support them in learning how to take better care of themselves amidst the chaos of life. Additionally, I specialize in working with allergy parents (and will also sometimes work directly with allergic adults) to help them navigate family life and parenting with food allergies and learn how to address/manage food allergy anxiety.

2. Educational Food Allergy Consultations (for those in any state): These non-therapy meetings provide general food allergy psychoeducation and guidance to help people navigate a specific aspect of food allergy life or parenting that has felt challenging and overwhelming. During these discussions, I provide education, recommendations, and resources to point people in the right direction and to help them figure out their next steps towards a more manageable life with food allergies. People typically meet with me once or twice.

✅ For therapy services, I am in-network with BCBS PPO and United Healthcare PPO, and can provide a superbill for those with out-of-network insurance.

✅ For educational consultations, these are non-reimbursable by insurance and are self-pay.

To learn more about working with me and to connect, visit my practice website at:
www.TamaraHubbardLCPC.com

11/10/2025

The world is a pretty messy place right now, and that messiness is impacting so many and so much, including airports and air travel right now.

I spent the last two weekends traveling out of state to speak at national conferences. Each time, I thanked the airport staff for continuing to work and keep us safe because that felt important for me to do.

It was very noticeable that the travel experience this weekend was much worse than last weekend. Long delays and even cancellations. And yet, I still offered thanks and grace to airport staff amidst the chaos and stress.

As I waited for my ride tonight once I finally made it home (hours after I was supposed to), I got to chatting with a gentleman who was also waiting for his ride and who had also been delayed flying back from the other side of the country.

Rather than focus on all the negatives of our long travel day - and there were many - we both chose to focus on the positive outcomes: that we were safe, that we were lucky to have had good trips, and that we were lucky to have even made it home today.

The main takeaway from this post?

That things will get messy (in our own lives and in the world), but to remember that we can choose how we want to navigate these messy experiences.

There’s only so much we can control. But we can impact and influence both our own experiences and the experiences of others around us just by dealing with what’s happening in a grounded, values-aligned way. We can (and will) feel all of our feelings ( such as anger, frustration, sadness), and can still show up with grace and kindness towards others, too.

Sending strength to all navigating the messy chaos in the world right now - even beyond air travel. ❤️

(And this is the face of someone who left the warmth of FL and arrived home to winter temps and snow 🥴)

10/28/2025

Thanks for the support, MOCHA - Mothers of Children Having Allergies! ❤️

Two of our food allergy favorites!!! MOCHA’s Denise Bunning with Tamara Hubbard (LCPC) at the recent book signing here in Chicago.

About the book:
Published by the prestigious John Hopkins University Press and peer-reviewed by top allergists and psychologists, this empowering guide teaches parents of children with food allergies how to mindfully manage anxiety and balance allergy safety with living fully.

Whether you're grappling with an unexpected diagnosis or seeking balance after allergy-related challenges, this book will help you foster an encouraging, confident environment for your child and yourself.

Check out Tamara’s website: https://www.tamarahubbardlcpc.com/about-tamara

Buy the book here: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/may-contain-anxiety-tamara-hubbard/1146939307 #
go. ite

10/23/2025

So grateful for last night’s author/book event!

10/12/2025

Do you ever find yourself worrying about what others think about you?

I know I do! After all, it’s very easy to get caught up in the “comparison trap”, where we compare ourselves to others and how they navigate life.

But here’s the truth - we’re all so busy just trying to get through each day and our own stuff that we’re not really focused on others. We’re more focused on ourselves and what’s happening in our own world.

Which means that people likely aren’t focusing on you and your actions as much as you think they are!

Reminding ourselves of this can be helpful for unhooking from anxious thoughts about being judged if we don’t look, act, or think like others.

So, try giving less of your energy to worrying about what others think of you, and instead, use that energy to do more of what makes you feel good and helps you be the you that you want to be in this world! ❤️

10/09/2025

Hope these parenting quotes are helpful ones to read this week...or any week!

10/09/2025

Thank you for sharing this Healio article, ACAAI!

Food allergies can be scary for kids. They may be even scarier for parents. But strategies are available to help families manage the fear, Tamara Hubbard, MA, LCPC, told Healio.“Those of us in mental health are trying to help individuals and families with allergies find a workable balance betw...

10/01/2025

May Contain Anxiety is officially available as of today wherever books are sold!

09/23/2025

Someone please pinch me because it's only ONE WEEK until the official publication day for "May Contain Anxiety", which is next Tuesday, September 30th!

On that note, the final early is from global parenting expert and anaphylaxis ambassador, Jo Frost. (You may also know her as television's Supernanny).

Jo and I connected years ago when I invited her to be a guest on my former podcast, "Exploring Food Allergy Families" (episodes 20 & 21), which can still be found on all podcast apps.

So, why did I reach out to her to be a guest on my food allergy-focused podcast?

Because Jo manages her own food allergies and is a spokesperson for multiple food allergy and anaphylaxis advocacy organizations. She has also helped families managing food allergies, and even featured one of these families on an episode of Supernanny.

(On a side note, Jo and I also connect on England because she's from there, and because I am married to a Brit, England is my 2nd home. As such, it's not uncommon for us to make note of our mutual love of tea and UK-made Cadbury chocolate, which simply isn't the same as Cadbury chocolate here in the States).

When I reached out to Jo earlier this year to ask if she'd be willing to read the book and provide a blurb for it, I was honored when she said she would be willing to amidst a jam-packed schedule.

Thank you SO much Jo for your ongoing support for my work with parents and families within the allergy community, and for your ongoing support for this book. It means a lot to me!

Finally, thank you to ALL who provided early book reviews and blurbs for . If you've missed any of these early reviews, be sure to scroll through my posts to see them. And be sure to follow the work these people are doing, too!

If you want to learn more about this book, visit www.FoodAllergyCounselor.com/book or check it out via your favorite bookstore website. And as of September 30th, it will be available in paperback, hardcover, e-book, and audiobook versions!

You can also put in a request for your local library to carry it, too - a fact I recently learned about and wanted to share.

09/17/2025

Thank you so much, my friend! (Chicago Allergy Center)