Episode #593: Getting Started While Pregnant

Summary

Abundant Practice Podcast: Episode #593 - "Getting Started While Pregnant"

Host: Allison Puryear
Release Date: November 13, 2024
Program: Abundance Practice Building
Membership Program: Abundance Party (www.abundanceparty.com)
Free Resources: www.abundancepracticebuilding.com
Contact: [e-mail]

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Introduction

In Episode #593 of the Abundant Practice Podcast, host Allison Puryear delves into the unique challenges and strategies for therapists who are starting or growing their private practice while navigating pregnancy. This episode offers invaluable insights for therapists aiming to balance personal life changes with professional growth, ensuring both their practice and personal well-being thrive.

Identifying and Understanding Your Ideal Client

Allison begins the discussion by emphasizing the importance of clearly defining one's ideal client. She introduces a guest (referred to as "Unknown" in the transcript), who shares her experience in pinpointing her target audience—namely, individuals who are "scatterbrained" and may be overcommitted, potentially dealing with undiagnosed ADHD or neurodivergence.

Key Points:

• Niche Definition: Understanding the specific challenges your clients face is crucial. For example, the guest identifies her ideal clients as those struggling with overcommitment and executive functioning issues rather than purely anxiety or panic disorders.
• Impact of Scatterbrainedness: The guest describes how being scatterbrained leads to self-deprecation and feelings of inadequacy in various aspects of life, including work and relationships (03:48).
• Client Demographics: Focusing on adults in their late 20s to 30s who are navigating increased responsibilities like marriage and parenthood.

Notable Quote:

"Many people aren't interested in going to a big clinic. They would much rather go to a small private office or virtual office." — Guest (03:04)

Effective Marketing Strategies for Private Practice

Allison and her guest explore practical marketing strategies tailored for therapists starting out, especially those balancing pregnancy and practice growth.

SEO and Content Marketing:

• SEO Importance: Optimizing your online presence to appear in search results when potential clients are seeking help with related issues (13:37).
• Blogging: Writing blog posts to address common client concerns can enhance visibility. The guest admits to enjoying writing and considers it her "easiest option" for content creation (15:48).
• Repurposing Content: Transforming blog content into various formats like social media reels to maximize reach without overwhelming oneself (15:55, 15:59).

Social Media Engagement:

• Time Investment: While social media can be powerful for client engagement and education, it requires consistent effort and interaction (14:48).
• Content Sharing: Sharing therapeutic techniques in an accessible manner helps potential clients see the value offered without it feeling like a therapy session (15:32).

Networking and Referrals:

• Building Relationships: Connecting with testing psychologists, ARNPs, and other therapists who can refer clients is essential. The guest suggests focusing on professionals who are not entrenched in large group practices (05:54).
• Public Speaking: Offering talks at schools and community events can position therapists as experts and generate referrals. Providing clear calls-to-action at the end of these talks encourages potential clients to reach out (10:54, 12:49).

Notable Quote:

"You don't want to bring in so many people who have, you know, you don't want to bring anybody probably within six weeks of when you're supposed to give birth." — Guest (20:22)

Managing Maternity Leave in Private Practice

A significant portion of the episode addresses the logistics and emotional considerations of taking maternity leave while maintaining a private practice.

Communication Strategies:

• Early Disclosure: Informing clients about pregnancy once it becomes visibly apparent ensures transparency and allows clients to find interim support (16:41).
• Setting Expectations: Clearly outlining the duration of leave and providing referrals helps maintain client trust and minimizes disruptions (17:22, 21:35).

Operational Adjustments:

• Session Planning: Adjusting the number of ongoing sessions based on the expected duration of maternity leave. For instance, shorter-term therapies like Solution-Focused Brief Therapy can accommodate the fluctuation in availability (20:50).
• Backup Plans: Establishing protocols for emergencies or extended leave periods, such as providing referrals or interim contact points, ensures continuity of care (22:34).

Financial Considerations:

• Budgeting for Leave: Planning financially to cover periods without income is crucial to reduce stress and focus on personal well-being during maternity (19:48).

Notable Quote:

"You have to be clear with the people who call at. I'd say about six months pregnant, I'd probably let the people calling know." — Guest (21:11)

Balancing Personal Life and Professional Growth

Allison and her guest discuss the delicate balance between managing a growing practice and the demands of an expanding family.

Time Management:

• Prioritizing Tasks: Focusing on high-impact activities like SEO and content creation can optimize time spent on marketing efforts.
• Delegation: Outsourcing tasks such as SEO or blog writing can alleviate the burden and allow therapists to concentrate on client care and personal responsibilities (14:11).

Emotional Well-being:

• Self-Regulation: Incorporating self-regulation tools, like empathy, helps manage the stress associated with both personal and professional life (10:08).
• Support Systems: Leveraging community support, such as the Abundance Party membership and Facebook communities, provides additional resources and encouragement (22:47).

Tools and Resources Mentioned

• Abundance Party Membership: A step-by-step program offering individual consultations, group calls, courses, and trainings to help therapists build their practices efficiently.
• TherapyNotes EHR System: Recommended for streamlining billing, scheduling, note-taking, and telehealth services. Promo code "Abundant" offers two months free trial.
• Free Resources: Private practice checklists, worksheets, and additional support available at www.abundancepracticebuilding.com.
• Scripts and Consents: Provided within the Abundance Party to assist with client communications during maternity leave (22:34).

Notable Quotes

1. On Marketing:

   "SEO might be a really effective tool for you." — Guest (04:47)

2. On Content Creation:

   "The blog posts don't have to be like Pulitzer Prize winning material." — Guest (14:11)

3. On Managing Leave:

   "I just had a conversation with somebody the other day about this. She had gone on maternity leave and basically had to rebuild her entire practice after." — Allison (17:23)

4. On Self-Regulation:

   "I'm planning on three months that could be extended. But that's the plan." — Guest (17:24)

Conclusion

Episode #593 of the Abundant Practice Podcast provides a comprehensive guide for therapists who are pregnant and seeking to establish or grow their private practices concurrently. Allison Puryear, along with her guest, offers actionable strategies spanning client identification, effective marketing, and managing maternity leave without compromising the quality of care or personal well-being. By leveraging resources like SEO, blogging, networking, and the supportive framework of the Abundance Party membership, therapists can navigate the challenges of pregnancy while building a thriving, sustainable practice.

Final Thoughts: Allison encourages listeners to utilize the free resources available and consider joining the Abundance Party for more in-depth support. She also reminds therapists of the importance of sharing knowledge and supporting fellow professionals in the journey toward a more balanced and fulfilling private practice.

Call to Action:

• Try TherapyNotes: Visit therapynotes.com and use promo code "Abundant" for two months free.
• Join Abundance Party: Learn more at www.abundanceparty.com.
• Access Free Resources: Download checklists and worksheets at www.abundancepracticebuilding.com.

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This summary captures the essence of Episode #593, focusing on actionable insights and strategies for therapists managing private practice growth alongside pregnancy. For further details and personalized support, listeners are encouraged to engage with the resources and community offered by Allison Puryear.

Transcript

[Allison]

Hi, welcome to the Abundant Practice Podcast. I'm Allison from Abundance Practice Building. I have a nearly diagnosable obsession with helping therapists build sustainable, joy filled private practices, just like I've done for tens of thousands of therapists across the world. I'm excited to help you too. If you want to fill your practice with ideal clients, we have loads of free resources and paid support. Go to abundance practicebuilding.com links all right onto the show try Therapy Notes, the number one rated electronic health record system available today with live telephone support seven days a week. It's clear why TherapyNotes is rated 4.9 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot and has a 5 star rating on Google. TherapyNotes makes billing, scheduling, note taking and telehealth incredibly easy. And now for all you prescribers out there, TherapyNotes is proudly introducing E Prescribe. If you're coming from another EHR, TherapyNotes makes the transition incredibly easy, importing your demographic data free of charge so you can get going right away. Find out what more than 100,000 mental health professionals already know and try TherapyNotes for two months absolutely free. Just go to therapynotes.com and enter promo code Abundant at checkout. Try it today with no strings attached and see why everyone is switching to Therapy Notes now featuring E Prescribe.

[Unknown]

You really wish grad school had covered.

How to fill a private practice.

In grad school you had a professor you could ask questions, someone who could.

Tell you what you were doing wrong.

And how to fix it. You had classmates working towards the same goal. Think of Party plus like that grad school class you wish you had. You get individual consultation about your specific practice with clear feedback and guidance. You get group calls with other people building their practices who have your back. We cover everything from marketing to mindset and you have access to everything in the Abundance party. All the courses and trainings that have filled thousands of therapists practices. Thanks to the feedback, the support and the clear step by step, people in party get full faster. The majority of party members fill their practice in three months. Check out Party in the link in the show notes and join the interest list if you're ready to build what.

[Allison]

You'Ve been dreaming of.

[Unknown]

Hi, how you doing?

I'm good, how are you?

I'm good, I'm good. What would be most helpful today?

Okay, so I am just starting out, like literally just starting out and I'm really struggling like trying to figure out marketing here. So like every everybody here is kind of like all the centers are really possessive we'll say of their Clients, So they're not open to referrals or anything like that. So I'm kind of really struggling in that area.

Yeah. And I would say in most areas the centers and the group practices are not looking to refer people out. It's. It goes against their business model.

Yeah.

So instead it's looking at who else do your ideal clients find first? Many, many people aren't interested in going to a big clinic. They would much rather go to like a small private office or virtual office, you know, but they're looking for one person, not a huge conglomerate. So tell me first about your ideal client because that's going to shape all of it.

So okay, so I did the niche course and I kind of came out with like my ideal client is a scatterbrained person who knows they can do better but can't figure out like how to do better.

Got it. And how is their scatterbrainedness impacting their life?

They just I guess like self deprecation, like at the end of the day like knowing God, like gosh, if, if these things had been there, I could have done this or I could have achieved better or I could like excel in my job or family or stuff like that.

And what's causing the scatterbrain? Are they, do they have adhd? Are they just over committed? Are they anxious? What's happened?

I would say more like over committed or like ADHD over anxiety. Like I've worked with some anxiety. I kind of struggle to work with strictly people that just have anxiety or like panic disorder. But I have worked with them. So I would say like more on like the neurodivergent kind of over committing, like more people pleasing almost side.

Awesome. And do they know they have adhd?

Most of them don't.

Okay. Yeah. Okay. So your ideal clients, they're struggling with this. I think they're probably googling.

Okay.

So SEO might be a really effective tool for you.

Okay.

I think the private practitioner like to testing psychologists. Maybe your ideal client has just found out like their doctor suggested. So like PCPs would be lower down on the rung of like who to contact because they're just hard to get in with. It takes a lot of work to get in with a doctor. They can fill your practice single handedly but you know, it takes significantly more effort. So I would talk to testing psychologists and let them know like they don't have to have an ADHD diagnosis. Maybe they ruled out adhd, but they are still having executive functioning issues because they're over committed because they're having a hard time. Yeah. I would look for the ARNPs in your area, the prescribers that are not associated with big groups because they're likely prescribing a fair amount of ADHD meds. And thinking of all the people who already know, which is not necessarily your ideal client. I think the other therapists who are full, who work with. Do you have a gender preference?

No, not really.

Okay. Do you have an age that you really love?

So, like, I enjoy most working with people in their late 20s to 30s.

Okay.

I have worked with children. I don't, I'm not a fan of working with children. I've worked with teens. Teens are fine. Like, I'm, I'm okay with teens, but I would say, like, ideally it would be like late 20s on up.

Okay, got it. So there's significantly more responsibilities at this age. Right. They might be getting married, they might be having kids. So they are taking what already probably felt overwhelming for them in terms of like their to do list and the things on their plate. And it's, it's amping way up.

Yeah.

So you can speak to that. You can speak to the ways. I'm thinking about your website right now. You can speak about the ways in which them dropping balls is impacting work, is impacting relationships, is impacting their relationship with themselves. You said, like, the self deprecation is there. And so I think there's a comparison that's often happening for your clients too, too, of why is it that everybody else can keep all these balls in the air or all these plates spinning and I can't? Am I just lazy? Am I just not good enough?

Yeah.

Because if they don't know that they're neurodivergent. And I mean, so many people in this age range are finding out like, oh, that explains everything. Like, now I get it.

Yeah, I found out two years ago, so.

Yeah, exactly. It's wild. I mean, I think about all my therapist friends who I was in grad school 20 years ago. So ADHD was like tiny touched upon. It was not talked about in the way it is now, and it was talked about in relation to children. And so, so many of my peers are in their 40s and realizing, yeah, so I'm glad you found out two years ago and I'm glad that it's such a conversation in the zeitgeist, because otherwise a lot of people would go undiagnosed, 100%. So I don't know that your ideal client hasn't considered that they might have adhd though, just because it is a part of the zeitgeist, if they're on TikTok or Instagram or have friends.

Right.

You know, like, it gets talked about. So you could even say something like, you wonder if you have ADHD or if you're in some way neurodivergent, because it just seems so much easier for everyone else. I would talk to the others in your area that specialize in ADHD that promise you there are some private practice folks who work with both adults with adhd. They're probably full, just like you will be. And so they can, after conversations and understanding that, like, you know what you're doing, then they'll refer people your way.

Yeah.

Are you in an area where neurodivergence is kind of, like, accepted and appreciated?

So yes and no.

Okay.

I think yes. For the greater. We'll say, like, the greater population. No. In terms of, like, schooling and anything like that. There aren't, like, honestly, like, there really aren't resources. Like, I ended up having to take my child out of school because she wasn't getting help. So it's like a yes and a no. Like, I think it's a conversation, but a lot of people aren't necessarily open to that.

Got it. Okay. And are you working virtually or in person exclusively?

Both.

Awesome. So you've got the whole state. And what state are you in?

I'm in South Carolina.

Awesome. Yeah. Hey, Carolina.

Next.

Yeah. Okay. And I will stay with the schools. As a parent of a kid with multiple neurodivergent diagnoses, sometimes they appreciate it, but they don't have the resources for it. And sometimes they don't appreciate it, and they don't allocate the resources to it. It's all over the place. But because you're wanting to work with adults, I think that there's a different tact you can take than you would need to if you were working with kids in the schools. How do you feel about public speaking?

I'm okay with it.

Okay.

I'm not opposed to it. I haven't done a lot beyond, you know, school requirements. But, like, I'm not opposed to it.

Yeah. I wonder if giving talks at schools and, like, I know you're like, but I don't want kids giving talks at schools about attention issues and how. I mean, we know there's just such a huge correlation. I mean, it's hereditary, it's genetic. Like, there's. The parents have it, too. And so you can talk about, like, how, as a parent, you can Self regulate when your kid is driving you crazy because they're not doing X, Y or Z when you've told them to 35 times. And how one of those self regulation tools could be empathy. And how does this show up for you? And what we know is that many people are being late diagnosed with adhd. And here's how it shows up in adults.

Okay.

If you were doing elementary school, some of the people might be older than your ideal clients, but they're still, you know, 20 and 30 year old there.

Yeah.

So you could kind of like pitch it as this thing, give them what they're looking for. Plus far more they're going to want referrals for their kids. So have those ready. And make sure at the end of any talk you always sell from the stage, never just be like, thanks so much for your time and walk away. To say, like, for some of you, I mentioned late diagnosis ADHD and what that looks like and that might be kind of freaking you out a little bit. This is the population I work with. I work with adults with adhd. If that's something you'd like support in, you have my information. I'd love to, I'd love for you to reach out. So don't be afraid to say that it's not cheesy or salesy or rude because the people sitting there like, oh my gosh, do I have adhd? And I haven't known all this time and it explains so much and what do I even do with that? The person sitting there needs to be told what to do next.

Okay.

So I think it's also like for me, just kind of getting started. Like, how do you even get your foot in a door like that?

School counselors.

Okay.

So you probably have a relationship with a school counselor at the school your kid went to. Whether it's good or bad, I don't know. But like you have their email at least.

Yeah.

And so it could be reaching out to them and saying like, I know my kid wasn't a fit for the school. I have this talk that I've put together that I think will be really helpful for parents who have kids that struggle to concentrate or struggle to sit still. Is this something you would be interested in? And most of the school counselors in a district kind of know one another and communicate. So it's kind of a talk. And you give the same exact talk. You don't need to reconfigure it. But you could do the same talk at multiple schools. You could also reach out to the private Schools in the area. Also to the school counselor.

Okay.

Or if you can find like the PTA or PTO president, they often are looking for speakers and sometimes the schools have them listed.

Okay. Yeah.

So just getting started because I have like the website, I have my Psychology Today and all that set up. So now I'm just trying to get people to contact me.

Yeah, you need people to find your website in Psychology Today. Yeah. So networking is great for that, but it's not an immediate payoff. I really think your people are probably starting to Google, like, why can't I get things done? Or time management for dummies. Or you know, like they're trying to find some hack when it's just that their brain works differently and then the time management thing they find online is going to help for three days and then it's not going to help anymore.

Right.

And then they're going to feel shame about it when it's not their fault. So I would write some blog posts and SEO those puppies. Whether that's outsourcing it or that's diy, there are lots of resources for SEO. The people we like and recommend, they have different tiers where they'll do it for you or they'll teach you how to do it or it's a court, you know, so there are different things for that. And in the party we have them. SEO a blog post so you can see how that's done. That's what I would suggest.

Gotcha.

And the blog posts don't have to be like Pulitzer Prize winning material. If you have a hard time writing, which, I mean, I know a lot of my neurodivergent folks do. You know, it's not so fun to sit there with a blank page. You could talk to, text it, and then edit it. You could talk to, text it, put it in chat, GPT, tell them to match the tone and to clean it up and to make it at least 800 words. There are all sorts of things you could do that can make it more doable.

Okay, what about social media and videos? Is that something worth like tapping into?

It is if you love social media and you have the time for it, that one takes the most time of pretty much all of the marketing strategies. Because the thing that makes social media work is that it's social and so you have to be on there. You have to reply to everything. You have to post often enough that you're able to both build an audience and stay on people's radar. But I think it could be really powerful because there's so much education you can do around it. There's so much like, here's why you don't need to beat yourself up about this. Like, whether or not they have ADHD or they just have executive functioning issues, or they're just overwhelmed. We live in a culture of overwhelm. So even the folks who are neurotypical struggle.

Right.

Don't be afraid to give away your best stuff. It is not the same as a therapy session. So if there are techniques you use in therapy that are really effective for your people that can translate into social media without it being like, therapy, then don't be afraid to share that with people.

Okay.

I like writing. So, like, I've thought of starting a blog several times and I just haven't pulled the trigger.

Yeah.

So I think that would probably be my easiest option right now.

Awesome. And you can do twofers. You could make so many reels off of a blog post. You could just basically look at a paragraph you wrote, say it into your phone like a reel, and it's like a twofer with the work that you did. So if you want to do social media, don't be afraid to reuse content because it's going to keep you from becoming a content machine and feeling overwhelmed.

Right.

We don't want you in the position your clients are in. Right, Exactly.

Yeah.

Yes.

So my other question would be. So I'm three months pregnant.

Congratulations.

Thank you.

I haven't told any of my clients. How do you start that conversation?

Yeah. I was in private practice for both my kids. I waited until I was solidly out of the questionable area. So solidly out of the first trimester. I showed with both of them really early and having, like, my clients all have eating disorders, so they notice body changes. So I kind of had to talk about it earlier than I may have otherwise. But I think as soon as you start showing in a way that your clients in person would see, whenever that time is, I would do this for your virtual people, too. Just so everybody's on the same page at the same time and you don't, like, forget to tell a very tall person, then I would let them know. We have scripts for that in the party.

[Allison]

Okay.

[Unknown]

I just had a conversation with somebody the other day about this. She had gone on maternity leave and basically had to rebuild her entire practice after. Whereas with both my maternity leaves, I was full within two weeks of returning because most of my people came back. And the difference, as we sussed it out, the difference was she left with a. I don't know how long my maternity leave is going to be. That could be six months. That could be a year. I totally understand. I would go find another therapist or use the referral provided. Whereas I said, I am planning on with my first, I said, I am planning on three months that could be extended. But that's the. That's the plan. And so, because that was kind of like in everybody's head, when indeed, three months later I was able to come back, it was no problem. And I'd given everybody referrals because I didn't want anybody left hanging. But. And this was a long time ago, like 11 years ago. So if anybody took them, they still came back to me. Basically, it was like an interim therapist with my second kid. I was gone for two months, and everybody came back. So it was a lot smoother and easier, I think, because they knew what to expect. And I still left wiggle room for, like. I mean, you never know what's going to happen. Right. And I had postpartum depression with my first, and it had resolved by the end of that third month, or else I would have had to extend it. But I left enough wiggle room that if anything happened to me, medically or emotionally, that required it to go longer, I had given myself an out there.

Okay. Yeah.

That's what my husband and I have been discussing. Like, about three months probably would be enough. Assuming everything is good and healthy.

Yeah. So, yeah. And all our international people right now are like, three months. That's it. I know, right? Fail. Here in the US I have friends who went back to work two weeks later because they didn't have any saved up, and that was the position they were in. So, yeah, you can still be in a diaper yourself at work. You're in the good old US of A. So I would do all the math, too, with finances and making sure it's all. Y'all are going to be fine. So that you're not stressing about money while you're stressing about having new life that you're responsible for and all of that.

Yeah.

It's such a. Is this your first?

This is my second.

Second. Okay, cool.

But a decade later, so.

Oh, wow. Oh, my gosh.

Huge gap.

The stuff they have now, like, the pumps are wild. Like, all the cool stuff.

I was looking at that. I was like, w. Me at 21 didn't have this.

Yeah. I was talking to one of my associates that works in my clinical practice, and I was like, what does that sound? We're just standing there in the kitchen. I was like, what's that sound? She was like, it's my pump. She's just standing there pumping. You couldn't even see anything. It was amazing.

That's crazy.

Yeah, yeah.

So those are my two, like, really pressing concerns right now.

Yeah. Well, and it's an interesting thing. Like you're starting out and ramping up and you're also pregnant and going to need to shift down.

Right.

And so that's kind of a delicate balance because you don't want to bring in so many people who have, you know, you don't want to bring anybody probably within six weeks of when you're supposed to give birth.

Yeah.

And depending on the type of therapy you do too. Like if you do Solutions Focus Brief therapy, for instance, you could keep taking folks. Keep taking folks. But if you do longer term work.

Yeah.

It's being clear with the people who call at. I'd say about six months pregnant, I'd probably let the people calling know. Clients tend to underestimate the amount of time they're going to be in therapy. So a lot of people will be like, that's fine. Because you can say, like, I can meet with you for 3ish months depending on when this baby comes, but.

Right.

And we can pick up three months later.

Yeah.

And some people will bite and some people will say, no, thank you. So.

Yeah, yeah.

So I do like, I would say I, like I've done both. I use a lot of emdr, so sometimes that escalates the process and sometimes there's just a lot of stuff you got to sort out. So that's kind of a toss up, I found.

Yeah, yeah. EMDR Dr. Is pretty magic about that. Yes. So quick. Yeah. And if you know the average number of sessions that people see you, like, if it's eight sessions, then you can let people know, like on average. And this is going to depend on what you're coming in with when on average I see my clients for eight sessions or two months or six months or whatever and just let them know. And I would, I would only maybe share that because I don't want them comparing themselves to your average, you know, But I might share that only in, in the context of you being out for maternity leave. Okay.

All right, I'll do those things.

Sounds good. Yay. Congratulations. We have a really long blog post, really long from my second when I was pregnant with my second, that if you just search maternity leave and abundance practice building, you'll find it.

Okay, cool.

I will do that.

Awesome.

Yay. Yay.

Right. And in the party. We also have all the consents I used because there's all this paperwork, you know, that you need to let them know, like, I may just not show up one day, basically, like. Or I may have this other person call you to let you know.

That's true.

So there's some consents that you might want them to sign so that you're cya. You know.

Yeah, I'll look that up. I hadn't even thought of that actually.

Yeah, we got you covered.

Yeah. All right.

Keep us updated in the Facebook community. Absolutely. And congratulations. Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Take care. Bye. Bye.

[Allison]

If you're ready for a much easier practice, Therapy Notes is the way to go. Go to therapynotes.com and use the promo code abundant for two months. If you're listening, you probably need some support building your practice. If you're a super newbie, grab our free checklist using the link in the show Notes. I'd love for you to follow rate and review, but I really want you to share this episode with a therapist friend. Let's help all our colleagues build what they want.