Dr. Lombard is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Chicago. She is a psychological advisor to start-up tech company, Alerje and co-founder of the Comfort Kits for Children Initiative. She is a former Research Assistant Professor at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and school-based psychologist.
She has over 30 years of direct service, teaching, and supervisory experience. She integrates mind-body skills in her therapeutic work with children, families, and adults as they cope with anxiety, stress-mediated health concerns, and pain.
She also treats children and adults experiencing unexpected grief and loss, sometimes described as traumatic bereavement.
For over 10 years she delivered services within a preschool and elementary school, in addition to her private practice. This was an opportunity to therapeutically work directly with children in a school setting and to provide parent guidance, clinical supervision to trainees, and consultation on topics such as risk behaviors, trauma, SEL, and screen-time to educators. Dr. Lombard is interested in exploring the overlap between the devices we use, the social media we participate in, the multiple forms of media surrounding us in our everyday lives and nurturing healthy families.
From early 2020 to summer of 2022, she was on the faculty of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Medical Social Sciences, Center for Food Allergy and Asthma Research, as a research assistant professor. She applied her knowledge of stress management skills (like mindfulness, hypnosis, and guided imagery) to better understand and meet the psycho-emotional needs of those with food allergies, eczema, and atopic disease.
She led behavioral health initiatives within the Center and the launch of a free digital behavioral health tool for parents during the pandemic. In addition to curated wellness resources, it included mindfulness practices and other stress management exercises for parents and children. In March 2022 she began the Comfort Kits for Children Initiative, part of her leadership activities as President of the Board of Directors of the National Pediatric Hypnosis Training Institute (NPHTI). This initiative, Comfort Kits for Children, is now a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization and has provided over 1500 Comfort Kits to children impacted by the war in Ukraine (in addition to maintaining a website of curated behavioral health resources).
She has broadened the mission to serve Chicagoland children who have experienced gun shootings and other traumatic events. Comfort Kits have been donated to under-resourced Chicago SEL programs and other community partners in need. Comfort Kits are accompanied by expert guidance, in both written and webinar formats.
Dr. Lombard earned her BA (Behavioral Sciences) and PhD (Psychology/Human Development) from the University of Chicago and completed an APA-approved internship at the Illinois State Psychiatric Institute. She is an ASCH Approved Consultant in hypnosis. She is an active leader in several professional organizations (President of the Board of Directors of the National Pediatric Hypnosis Training Institute, a member of the Council of Representatives of the American Psychological Association (Division 30), and President of the Chicago Society of Clinical Hypnosis).
Throughout the pandemic she has provided free weekly virtual mindfulness sessions for her community and colleagues.