It’s mental health month! Like many of you, I’ve been actively sharing mental health information as a way to increase education and reduce stigma surrounding mental illness. While it’s an honor to be in a profession that focuses on supporting the mental health of others, being a therapist often requires regularly going to “dark” places with clients, and that can take a toll on our own mental health.

After nearly 20 years in the field, I’ve noticed that a lot of therapists (myself included) tend to be caretakers, people-pleasers, and self-sacrificers, making us particularly vulnerable to neglecting our own mental health in the name of caring for others. I have learned to become fiercely dedicated to self-care, self- awareness and to maintaining my own relationships in order to protect and nurture my own mental health.

I wanted to reach out beyond my own experience to therapists around the world to see how they nurture their own mental health in a profession that can be emotionally and mentally exhausting. Here’s what they had to say.
1. Live in the present
“I make myself more present by asking ‘Where am I in space right now? What do i hear? What do I feel? What do I taste and smell? What do I see?’ ” Natalie Robinson Garfield.

“I find 20 minutes a day to escape from the world and enjoy the peace and quiet.” Deborah Serani, Ph.D.

(c) Can Stock Photo

An interesting theme emerged in my private practice consultation group last week. It may seem like an odd theme for a business group -  resentment. As I shared a few of my own experiences in private practice it became very clear that I had used my feelings of resentment as a guide to lead me to my ideal private practice.

photo credit: Eric Schwartzman

I’ve spent months writing about how to effectively use technology, and social media in particular, to build your private mental health practice. While the Internet has opened up exciting new ways for mental health therapists in private practice to market their practice, reach potential clients, and educate the public, it has also allowed for new ethical dilemmas.

When I first started practicing nearly two decades ago, I was concerned about my child being on the same soccer team as a client’s child, or about running into clients at parties of mutual friends. The increasing Internet usage by therapists and clients alike has created new opportunities for dual relationships online. Over the coming weeks I’ll be discussing ways to use social media ethically in the digital age.

Here are a just few examples of digital dual relationship dilemmas that therapists now face:

Specializing in vocational rehabilitation and work/life issues, Australian social worker Dawn Vincent has been  in the mental health field for 25 years. Like many therapists, she considered opening a private practice, but says she lacked the confidence to actually do it.

Read how one private practice course helped her muster up the courage to open her private practice in Camberwell, Victoria, Australia where she helps clients work toward mental health and well-being and navigate changes and choices in life and in work.

Why did you decide to open a private practice?

I had thought about it for about 10 years, but lacked the confidence to go ahead.  After spending over 20 years in vocational rehabilitation I decided to take my long service leave and think about my options.  After an overseas trip I came home and enrolled in an Introduction to Private Practice course run by the Australian Association of Social Workers.  At that time there were only a small number of Social Workers in private practice and it was still somewhat controversial here in Australia.

The profession has a very strong welfare orientation where most Social Workers are employed by the Commonwealth or State governments or work in hospitals and community based settings. Having worked for a large government bureaucracy myself, I liked the idea of the independence and autonomy private practice seemed to offer. I had been a bit of a workaholic and I wanted to move to a better work/life balance and be able to work my own hours.  The course helped me to decide that private practice was what I wanted and I committed to this goal.

Dr. John Duffy

When it comes to parenting and family relationships, particularly during the tween and teen years, Clinical Psychologist Dr. John Duffy has become the go-to expert. Not only does he have a thriving private practice in the Chicago area, he also published a book last year called The Available Parent: Radical Optimism for Raising Teens and Tweens (2011), and blogs regularly for The Huffington Post on relationship topics.

Learn more about how Dr. Duffy parenting niche found him, how he manages the stress of being “the boss” and how he’s built a thriving private practice.

Why did you decide to open a private practice?

From the day I began grad school, I knew I wanted a private practice. To be honest, it started much earlier as I idealized characters played by Bob Newhart and Judd Nelson. Later, I realized it was the model I could thrive in. I had spent many years in a VERY corporate environment working for other people, and I knew I wanted to work for myself.

Jill Kristal, PhD of Transitional Learning

Have you ever known a psychologist who specializes in helping expatriates through relocation transitions? Me neither. Talk about an interesting niche! So, how does one develop this kind of specialization?

While living in London, England Clinical Psychologist Jill Kristal, Ph.D. of Transitional Learning was instrumental in transforming the US Embassy internal counseling center into The American Counseling Center, a community based organization hiring American trained and licensed therapists to work with the expatriate community. Since returning to the US, Dr. Kristal has continued to work with expatriates, served as Special Education Consultant to School Choice International and established a private practice in Larchmont, NY. With over 20 years in private practice, Dr. Kristal has worked with with children of all ages, adults and couples.

Peek into a day in Dr. Kristal’s life.

As 2011 comes to a close, I wanted to review which posts have had the most views since I launched this blog in August 2011.  It also gives me an idea of which topics are most relevant and interesting to other mental health private practitioners. Is your favorite article on this list?

Here are the most viewed articles for 2011:

1. What I wish I’d Know Before Starting A Private Practice
2. A Day In the Life Of A Private Practice Therapist
3. 5 Self-care Tips For Therapists
4. 8 Real-world Marketing Strategies From Successful Therapists
5. Getting 3 F’s In Private Practice Is A Good Thing
6. Multiple Income Streams Soothe Therapist’s Financial Anxiety (part 1)
7. Therapist Roll Call: Join The Private Practice Twitter List
8. Why Therapists Need An Elevator Speech (part 1)
9. 5 Free Ways To Market Your Therapy Practice
10. Facebook Pages For Therapists: How To Set Up A Practice Page

I’d love to know which posts have been most helpful to you in creating your dream practice during 2011.

Do you have any areas of practice that you need help with? Please post any specific private practice questions or practice related topics that you’d be interested in hearing more about in the coming year in the comment box below.

Happy New Year!

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Karen R. Koenig, LCSW

When I launched this blog in July I had no idea that one of the perks would be connecting with so many amazing therapists who’ve created successful practices. I’ve been inspired by shrinks around the globe who demonstrate the varied ways to make a living, and make a difference with their clients and I thought you’d be too.

I’m thrilled to interview Karen R. Koenig, LCSW for the first in an ongoing series “Adventures In Private Practice” so you can learn from her experiences to improve your practice. I first learned of Karen’s work when I bought her  “Food and Feelings” workbook that I used with several of my eating disordered clients.

I’ve been impressed by Karen’s passion for helping clients struggling with food issues, while writing to raise public awareness of how to relate with food in a healthy way, and maintaining excellent self-care.

After reading my recent posts on multiple income streams for therapists, Psych Central Associate Editor and blogger, Margarita Tartakovsky asked me how I, and other therapists, juggle so many different aspects of private practice. I’ve been thinking about her question and thought it might be fun to start a series that peeks into “a day in the life” of therapists in private practice. I thought I’d start with me, and start with–today.

Just to give you a little background…I’m a wife and a mother of 4 children ages 5 to 21. I’ve been in clinical practice for 16 years and I serve as director of  Wasatch Family Therapy, a private outpatient clinic that I founded in 2002. Recently, because my clinic has grown significantly, I’ve stopped taking new clients in order to spend more time leading, training, and pursuing other passions, like writing, media contributing, etc.

You’ll notice that my “day in the life” doesn’t include seeing any clients. I am currently on a month-long sabbatical from clinical work, and from as much administrative work as possible, during the month of November to dedicate time and energy to finishing up my first book. After being approached by a publisher a few months ago I decided that it was an opportunity I didn’t want to pass up, but it would require cutting back on a lot of other responsibilities in order to make the deadline. I will resume seeing clients, running staff meetings, and training therapists the first week in December.

You take good care of you clients but are you taking good care of you? Being a therapist in private practice is incredibly fulfilling and very emotionally draining. While it’s an honor to be trusted with client’s deepest fears, pain, and vulnerabilities, it can take an emotional toll.

Therapists seem to be particularly vulnerable to putting our own needs on the back burner to attend to others. It’s why we’re good at what we do. It’s also why prioritizing self-care is crucial to professional and personal success, and to avoiding burnout.