Toby Thorwardson
Licensed Therapist, MSW, LISW
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I know from personal experience that OCD symptoms can be debilitating. I'm here to help you regain joy and peace in life instead of just surviving. I approach OCD therapy with kindness and as much fun and silliness as possible. I want you to feel empowered to laugh at OCD. Once you know how to address the symptoms, OCD is a bully that has lost its ability to taunt you. It is so satisfying to take your power back. My other areas of focus include ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and trauma.
I know from personal experience that OCD symptoms can be debilitating. I'm here to help you regain joy and peace in life instead of just surviving. I approach OCD therapy with kindness and as much fun and silliness as possible. I want you to feel empowered to laugh at OCD. Once you know how to address the symptoms, OCD is a bully that has lost its ability to taunt you. It is so satisfying to take your power back. My other areas of focus include ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and trauma.
Location
Licensed in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio
About
Clinical Expertise
OCD, Anxiety, Depression, Phobias, Skin picking, Hair pulling, Nail biting, Tics, Children and Adolescents
Cultural competencies
Atheism, Christianity, Other
Education
Temple University
Insurance
Plans accepted by Toby
Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross, Ascension SmartHealth, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, Cigna, Curative, Forest County Potawatomi, Horizon BCBS, Imagine Health, Independence Blue Cross, Partners Direct Health, United Healthcare,
Want to work with Toby?
Talk with our team to learn more.
Get to know Toby
My personal connection to OCD
I have OCD and I've been through ERP myself, so I know what it's like. I also had some pretty rough teenage years, and my therapist was the only person in my life who I felt compassion from. That made a huge difference for me, and realizing how much of an impact one person can have for someone else made me want to become a therapist myself.
Why my members say they feel comfortable with me
My genuineness. I'm very much me and I want you to be very much you in your sessions with me. If people call you weird, I don't care. Let me see your weirdness. I'll love it. I'm never going to dislike you, or laugh at you, or deny your experiences in any way. I approach therapy as a team thing and I'll always take any feedback or thoughts you have. Open communication is just so needed.
How I create a safe, supportive environment in therapy
I always try to read the room and see, okay, where are you at? How high is your stress? What can I do to help you feel better? Whether that's through open communication, giving you a little space, asking more questions, asking fewer questions, or whatever it might be, what can I possibly do to help you feel better? I want you to feel better. And we can get you feeling better as long as you're able to participate in this process and sit with these feelings a little bit at a time.
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