What’s the Point?
My first blog post! This is all very uncomfortable. I enjoy being a side character rather than the protagonist. My introverted nature challenges my need to connect with and help people. I am starting this blog as a marketing tool, but also a way to express myself on my own terms. A large part of this blog will include mental health information, tips, and tricks. The primary reason I became Licensed Professional Counselor isn’t because I wanted to help people. It was to help me deal with my own mental health problems. That being said, this blog will also contain my thoughts and feelings about my personal life. So one part mental health resource, one part learning about a mental health professional that has a problem with authority.
2019: My smile before working for corporate mental health
Oh sweet summer child
Why would a licensed therapist start a mental health life coaching business? Because I hate restrictions on my ability to do the work I was made for. To help people with their mental health needs. Being a therapist has been a rocky journey. I worked worked with amazing community mental health organizations, but wasn’t happy with my compensation. Then I gave psychiatric hospitals a few years of my life. Wow there is too much to unpack in the first post. After I swore off hospitals, it was working at a drug and alcohol rehab. This was such a fulfilling job until the facility was bought out by a soulless corporation. Corporate mental health is the DEVIL! So I gave private practice a try and fell in love. I worked at a small group practice that felt like home. Eventually, I started my own private practice Rebel Therapy Services. This was the scariest thing I have ever done and has been incredibly successful. It’s just ME. No boss to micromanage, no mandatory HR trainings reminding me not to harass my coworkers, and the ability to work from home.
2021: Getting dog snuggles and trying not to cry
I was the face of professional burnout
OK I didn’t answer the question of why I started coaching. Sorry I tend to go on a tangent and just roll with it. Back on track now. I became a coach because of a few reasons…
Insurance companies dictating a client’s treatment and how much I get paid. It’s heartbreaking if someone has to stop working with me when their insurance changes or coverage ends.
State license restrictions preventing me from helping people. I have ended several client relationships because they move out of Texas.
Clients don’t seem invested in something they aren’t paying for. Clients that use insurance, verses self pay, are less likely to put in the work and more likely to disappear into thin air.
Hating the focus on categorizing and diagnosing everyone. I don’t like being put in a box and labeled Major Depressive Disorder. A person shouldn’t need a diagnosis to get help.
Therapists have many restrictions on therapeutic relationships. Psychotherapy is designed to be one sided and some clients crave more collaboration than is allowed.
Coaching provides a space for me to work with clients around the world that are a great fit for what I offer. The exploration of mental health with a focus on purpose, meaning and responsibility.
My current office setup in our 700 square foot rental house
All dogs are therapy dogs
Stay tuned and don’t change that channel! Future posts will include how I cope with owning my own business, moving to the Central American country of Belize, and more dog pictures!
