Allison Grupski, PhD is a clinical psychologist specializing in health behavior change and obesity-related concerns.  When she first learned about NCWW, she was immediately impressed by the unique patient-centered philosophy and providers’ deep understanding of the complicated factors impacting people with obesity such as weight stigma and treatment bias.

Dr. Grupski’s weight and wellness specialization developed as her interests in disordered eating and health psychology began to merge during her training.  Prior to joining NCWW, she specialized in working with people preparing for and living with the outcomes of bariatric surgery at Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago.  She provided psychological and behavioral assessments along with individual, group, and family treatment.  She is especially dedicated to enhancing social support and encouraging long-term follow up behavioral health care, which is often overlooked in bariatric surgery treatment.  Dr. Grupski also provided general outpatient therapy for people struggling with depression and anxiety, supervised psychology externs and medical residents, and served as the Director of Outpatient Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at Loyola.

Dr. Grupski received her PhD at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she studied the relationship between motivation for exercise and disordered eating patterns.  She completed a health psychology internship at the Tampa VA hospital and a fellowship in psychosocial oncology at Rush University Medical Center.  She has received specialized training in a variety of evidence based clinical treatment modalities including motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness based stress reduction, and prolonged exposure therapy.

Dr. Grupski has published peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts in the area of bariatric surgery assessment and binge eating. She has presented her work at national conferences including The Obesity Society, the American Psychological Association, and the Association for Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies.  She has served on the board of directors for the Binge Eating Disorders Association and she will assume leadership of the Integrated Health Clinical Issues and Guidelines committee of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric surgery in 2016.