Meet Justin

Justin Tobin

LCSW

Background and Approach
Justin received his clinical education from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri (1999) and brings over twenty years of experience working with children, adults, and couples. His therapeutic approach blends Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (challenging negative and unhelpful thoughts), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (accepting emotions without judgment), Mindfulness (staying present focused) and Solution-Focused Therapy (practical steps in reaching goals).

Who Justin Works With
Justin specializes in working with high-achieving individuals—often men—who are navigating life transitions that create feelings of anxiety, overwhelm or uncertainty. This could be triggered by a job change, a change in a relationship, or a difficult personal decision that feels hard to navigate.

Areas of Focus & Clinical Approach
His clinical expertise includes treating anxiety, stress and feeling stuck – each of which can contribute to physical pain, impaired sleep, intimacy issues, substance use, anger outbursts and/or lower self-confidence.
Justin also works with couples and families. He facilitates difficult conversations by asking direct and challenging questions which is solely aimed at helping partners improve communication, rebuild trust, and deepen emotional connection with one another. He consistently pushes clients to realize – and then vocalize – their underlying message to their partner so that communication can be rebuilt.

What Clients Can Expect in Therapy
Justin’s warmth and sincerity is blended with being direct and challenging. He takes an active and engaged role in each therapy session. His style is to push his clients to find their core motivation for change, to confront fears and create actionable steps to be worked on outside of each session. It doesn’t matter the goal; each client is held accountable for their part in making progress.

A Little More About Justin
Justin lives in Chicago with his wife and five-year-old daughter. Outside of work, you’ll often find them exploring museums, spending time at the playground, or enjoying board games together at home. In his own time, Justin practices mindfulness daily, stays active at the gym, enjoys playing poker, reads regularly, and has recently found joy in reconnecting with music as he relearns the cello.