Abundant Practice Podcast

Episode #741: Shifting Niches

Host: Allison Puryear
Guest: Laura
Date: March 18, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode of the Abundant Practice Podcast explores the complexities and emotional realities of shifting or narrowing one's therapy niche—specifically for therapists working with clients struggling with food and body image, especially women in male-dominated fields. Allison guides Laura through her ambivalence about staying in or “fleeing” her niche, discussing marketing concerns, the impact of GLP-1 medications, and strategies to clarify a niche while making it personally sustainable and marketable.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Fear and Ambivalence Around Settling a Niche

Timestamps: 02:54–04:38

• Laura expresses uncertainty about narrowing her focus on food/body/eating disorder work.
• She wonders if her discomfort is a "marketing problem" due to not wanting to be visible or found.

Quote:
"I have this urge to like flee my niche which is food, body, movement, relationship, eating disorders, disorder eating...I think it's more of kind of a marketing problem that I'm not maybe being willing to be visible and seen and found."
— Laura (02:59)

2. The Unique Experience of High-Achieving Women in Male-Dominated Fields

Timestamps: 04:38–06:47

• Laura's ideal clients are women in tech and medicine, often seeking power through attractiveness and perfectionism.
• The tension: external success vs. internal disempowerment related to body image.

Quote:
"She's in this male dominated field, so she's kind of like in a powerful position, but disempowered within that realm...there is just so much pressure, no matter what we do for a living, to be considered attractive and that there is power in being attractive."
— Coach/Allison (06:11)

3. The Role of GLP-1 Medications & The Underlying “Enoughness” Struggle

Timestamps: 05:01–09:17

• Many clients turn to GLP-1 drugs (like Ozempic) as a quick “fix.”
• Even after weight loss, core issues of confidence and “never enough” persist.
• Eating disorder dogma vs. meeting clients where they are.

Quotes:
"Just because you lose weight doesn't make the problem that caused the eating disorder go away, right? No, it's just that your primary symptom may be sated for now."
— Coach/Allison (06:05)

"I think 90% or more of the women I've worked with... whether they have an eating disorder or not, we're all just trying to fucking feel good enough. It is this insidious, what do I need to do?"
— Coach/Allison (08:53)

4. Adjusting Marketing and Messaging for Ideal Clients

Timestamps: 09:17–12:50

• Shift website and messaging focus: bring “striving for enoughness” and the experience of high-achieving women more to the foreground.
• Use client language, avoid over-pathologizing (e.g., "food and body relationship" might sound clinical).
• Consider the subtle cues (“struggling to get there”) that resonate with ideal clients.

Quotes:
"Maybe the food body relationship might be just even saying that might be over pathologizing to them because they're like, 'No, the problem is I just need to lose weight.'"
— Coach/Allison (10:38)

5. Website Tactics: Specialty Pages & Dropdowns

Timestamps: 11:27–13:45

• Homepage can act as a “table of contents” leading to specialty subpages for each client group or problem area.
• Drop-downs and specialty pages help to clarify but should reflect only groups/problems relevant to the main niche.

Quote:
"Think about your homepage as kind of a table of contents almost...the three or four main tenants of what your ideal client is like, 'I'm coming to therapy for this.'"
— Coach/Allison (11:51)

6. Marketing Modalities: What Actually Matters?

Timestamps: 14:41–16:23

• Clients rarely search for therapy by modality (e.g., ACT).
• Use plain, client-centric language; mention modality (e.g. ACT) briefly on your “About Me” but don’t foreground it.

Quote:
"Most people don't care...They just think we all do the same thing."
— Coach/Allison (15:52)

7. Social Media & YouTube: Strategy vs. Energy

Timestamps: 16:25–17:26

• Occasional content on YouTube unlikely to build an audience.
• Use YouTube to host videos for your website, unless you can commit to consistent, weekly content creation.

Quote:
"YouTube is a vast expanse. So a couple things here and there are not likely to be found...I might use YouTube to host videos that you then place on your website."
— Coach/Allison (17:13)

8. Networking Systems and Referral Organization

Timestamps: 17:33–19:52

• Track contacts and follow-ups with spreadsheets.
• Add personal notes to jog memory ("her in-laws were in town").
• Prioritize genuine connections over forced networking.

Quote:
"If you've made a friend, make a friend and if that friend is networking to you, you've got a friend and a referral partner that you then can count as networking."
— Coach/Allison (19:53)

9. Prioritizing Professional Partnerships

Timestamps: 20:14–23:32

• Focus networking on the types of professionals your ideal client visits (psychiatrists, dietitians, functional medicine).
• Medical professionals in private practice are often best; hospital-based are harder to reach.
• Consider educational talks (GLP-1, anxiety) for prescribers to indirectly generate referrals.

Quotes:
"Who you prioritize is who does your ideal client go to first?...doctors are terrible patients...so where are they going to manage their stress?"
— Coach/Allison (20:38)
"You could do a talk at doctor's offices about GLP1 meds and kind of the underlying anxiety..."
— Coach/Allison (24:14)

10. Staying Rooted in Niche Despite Self-Doubt

Timestamps: 27:32–27:54

• Laura worries about the lack of interest/demand, considers abandoning her niche.
• Allison encourages “regrounding” and refining presentation, not giving up.

Quote:
"Do I abandon ship and focus on something completely different? And I think I just need to, like, no, just reground."
— Laura and Coach/Allison (27:48)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "We're all just trying to fucking feel good enough. It is this insidious, what do I need to do?"
  — Coach/Allison (08:53)
• "Maybe the food body relationship might be just even saying that might be over pathologizing to them because they're like, 'No, the problem is I just need to lose weight.'"
  — Coach/Allison (10:38)
• "You could do a talk at doctor's offices about GLP1 meds and kind of the underlying anxiety maybe. And how you will likely see an increase in confidence in your patients. And there's this underlying thing that food was solving."
  — Coach/Allison (24:14)
• "If you've made a friend, make a friend and if that friend is networking to you, you've got a friend and a referral partner that you then can count as networking."
  — Coach/Allison (19:53)
• "Do I abandon ship and focus on something completely different? And I think I just need to...no, just reground."
  — Laura & Coach/Allison (27:48)

Essential Timestamps for Core Segments

• Niche-taking fears and rationale: 02:54–04:38
• High-achieving women’s unique challenges: 04:38–06:47
• GLP-1s, eating, and “enoughness”: 05:01–09:17
• Messaging and marketing pivots: 09:17–12:50
• Website strategy & specialty pages: 11:27–13:45
• Modality marketing reality check: 14:41–16:23
• YouTube & content decision: 16:25–17:26
• Networking and relationship building: 17:33–19:52
• Strategic referral partnerships: 20:14–24:14
• Niche doubt and reassurance: 27:32–27:54

Summary for New Listeners

This episode is a candid and practical deep dive into the real struggles therapists face when clarifying or shifting their niche—especially in work focused on food, body, and high-achieving women. Allison provides actionable marketing, networking, and messaging advice, emphasizing authenticity, intentionality, and meeting clients where they are, both emotionally and in their language. The conversation is a blend of strategic tip-sharing and heartfelt acknowledgment of how challenging, and ultimately rewarding, it can be to settle into and thrive within a well-defined private practice niche.