Chelsea Tobias, LISW-S

LEAD THERAPIST – CHILD & ADOLESCENT TEAM

  • Available for In-Person Sessions (Columbus) and Telehealth

  • Ages I Treat: Children (6-11), Teens (12-17), Young Adults (18-22); Adults (23+)

  • Eating Disorder Specialties:
    AN, BE, BN, OSFED, ARFID
    Picky Eating
    Food Anxiety
    Fear of Vomiting
    Body Image
    Intuitive Eating

  • Other Specialties: PTSD/Trauma, OCD, Anxiety Disorders, Depression, LGBTQ+, Sex Worker Allied
  • Approaches: FBT, CBT-E, CBT-AR, Adolescent Focused Therapy, CBT, CPT, Trauma Focused-CBT, Exposure with Response Prevention
  • Licensed In: OH and IA

Get to Know Chelsea (she/her)

I specialize in working with children, teens, and young adults who struggle with issues related to food, body image, anxiety, depression, OCD and trauma. I am a passionate advocate for my clients and believe in providing high quality, evidence-based care designed to support each individual’s goals. I operate from a strengths-based, person-centered approach and work to empower individuals and families to live their best, most balanced lives.

A core component of my work is to assist clients in gaining a better understanding of the relationship between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors to help support their recovery. In the treatment of children and teens with eating disorders, I utilize Family Based Treatment (FBT), Enhanced Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT-E), and Adolescent Focused Therapy (AFT). FBT is the first-line treatment recommendation and engages the whole family system in supporting the child on their path to recovery, which I believe is essential.

I use CBT-AR for the treatment of ARFID, and Exposure with Response Prevention for the treatment of OCD. For those who have experienced trauma, I’m trained in Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) with children and am a national Cognitive Processing Therapy provider for teens and adults. Both of these treatments are ideal for rapid symptom reduction and skills building.

Additionally, I am a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor and offer support for those looking to heal their relationship with food and their bodies using the 10 principles of Intuitive Eating. I believe that all bodies are good bodies and have seen the benefit that comes from making peace with food. If thoughts about food and your body control your life and you are ready to ditch the diet mentality, Intuitive Eating might be the right path for you.

I’m a Columbus native and received my undergraduate degree from Otterbein University. I went on to work for the Supreme Court of Ohio, where I spent four years developing and disseminating trainings for Ohio’s Guardian ad Litem Education Program. These experiences inspired my decision to pursue social work. I completed a fellowship at the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University, and completed my Masters of Science in Social Administration (MSSA) with a certificate in Management and Leadership in 2015. My fellowship focused on evidence-based practice development and evaluation, with a specific interest in trauma therapy..
I’ve been working in the eating disorder field for nearly a decade. Previously, I worked for The Emily Program – Cleveland, where I coordinated the adolescent partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient programs using an adapted version of FBT, and then transitioned into the role of outpatient child and adolescent therapist. In graduate school, I completed field placements with Cleveland Rape Crisis Center and in a school-based setting teaching social emotional skills.
Academy for Eating Disorders