Episode #779: Tween/Teen Niches

Summary

Episode Overview

Podcast: Abundant Practice Podcast
Host: Allison Puryear
Episode: #779 – Tween/Teen Niches
Date: July 29, 2026

In this episode, Allison Puryear speaks with Stephanie, a seasoned school counselor transitioning into private practice after 16 years in middle school counseling. The discussion centers on shaping a sustainable, appealing private practice focused on tweens and teens, honing a niche, community marketing in a small town, private-pay strategies, and articulating value for both parents and young clients.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Transitioning from School Counseling to Private Practice

[02:08] – Stephanie outlines her recent exit from the “broken” school system and the accelerated path into private practice, spurred by new counselors entering her small community. She expresses gratitude for the Abundance modules, but feels “jumbled” as she clarifies her niche.

Quote:
"Leaving this...dysfunctional system has made me absolutely not want to go into another one in terms of the insurance world. So that's like a no go for me." – Stephanie [04:05]

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2. Clarifying and Owning a Niche in a Small Community

[04:46] – Stephanie’s passion is working with middle schoolers, especially high-achieving girls in friendship turmoil. However, concerns arise about being “too narrow” in a rural market (her main area has only 3,000 residents).

• Stephanie worries the small pool could limit potential clients but notes her reputation extends to the neighboring larger town where she worked.
• They explore how to talk about her niche without feeling boxed in.

Quote:
"I hear says that I need to get narrow." – Stephanie [05:42]

Host’s Insight:
"And you've got two states to market to." – Podcast Coach [06:12]

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3. Marketing Tactics and Community Engagement

[06:43] – Stephanie learned that most local info flows through the community Facebook page and considers a strategic announcement, weighing whether to focus on “transitions” over summer (grade moves, new schools) or friendship issues.

[09:07] – Allison advises not to niche only by transition points but to focus on ongoing relational challenges for tweens/teens, ensuring year-round client flow.

Quote:
"I don't want you to focus on the transitions because that happens once a year. And I want you to have client flow the whole year." – Podcast Coach [08:56]

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4. Speaking Directly to Both Parents and Kids

[11:32 & 12:18] – Stephanie notes that parents (especially moms) are her primary referrers, but she finds it hard not to speak to students directly.

• Allison suggests having a dedicated page or video on her site that speaks to tweens/teens in their own language, validating their unique experience.

Quote:
"Very few adults know what it's like to be you right now. It's a completely different world than when your mom was a kid." – Podcast Coach [12:24]

Practical Tip:

• Use a video for direct connection; differentiate her marketing by showing up personally (also on Facebook or Instagram).
• This could set her apart in a market where most counselors “see everyone” but don’t get personal or niche-specific.

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5. Navigating Pricing Across State Lines

[14:52] – Stephanie is unsure how to set rates, as the wealthier Jackson side of the border supports much higher prices ($350/session) compared to Idaho ($180/session).

• She fears prospective Jackson clients will undervalue lower Idaho rates, while Idahoans may balk at Jackson prices.
• Allison suggests setting rates based on needs, offering sliding scale spots discreetly, and positioning her value rather than just focusing on market averages.

Quote:
"What you charge needs to be based on what you need to make and how many hours you want to work. Not on market analysis." – Podcast Coach [17:05]

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6. Effective Website Structure and Messaging

[21:24] – Allison provides a structural suggestion:

• Market to “teens and tweens” broadly on the homepage.
• Highlight three core challenges (e.g., relationship difficulties, perfectionism at school, and anxiety).
• Provide specialty pages for each, tailored both to parental concerns (e.g., bullying, isolation, school refusal) and to the student’s experience.
• Use language that mirrors parent’s lived experience ("the kid coming home in tears" or not knowing when to step in as a parent).

Quote:
"It's all about that parent perspective because when they land on your website, that's what they see. It's like, oh, my God, this is exact. This was yesterday, this was Tuesday, you know?" – Podcast Coach [25:42]

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7. Handling Variety, Preventing Burnout

[22:22 & 23:53] – Stephanie expresses a desire for variety, not wanting to get bored. Allison advises her to “highlight the things that you really love working with” within tween/teen issues – friendship struggles, perfectionism, self-advocacy, etc. – to keep her work engaging and broad enough without diluting her brand.

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8. Recognizing Real Referral Motivation

[23:53 & 24:39] – Discussion about what prompts parents to seek therapy for their children. Stephanie often works with girls who have been bullied to the point of suicidality or are refusing school.

Quote:
"A lot of these girls...are the ones that have shown up in my office with their parent or after a parent's called because they have been bullied to the point of, like, considering suicide. And so I feel like those are the ones that...I'm really good at." – Stephanie [24:54]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "I am, in fact, the best boss I've ever had already." – Stephanie on setting healthy limits and work-life alignment using private practice modules [17:46]
• "Some of us are verbal processors. Right." – Podcast Coach [26:01]

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Important Timestamps

• [02:08] Stephanie discusses her background and rapid transition from school to private practice
• [04:46] Stephanie reveals her passion for working with middle school girls in transition and her worries about niching in a small town
• [08:56] Allison advises focusing on ongoing relational issues for a steady client flow
• [12:18] Tips for connecting directly with young clients via video and clear web pages
• [14:52] Navigating differing price expectations in two nearby regions
• [17:05] Setting rates based on her life design, not strictly market analysis
• [21:24] Suggestions for website messaging structure: focusing on parent perspective and offering specialty pages
• [24:54] The reality of the most acute tween/teen issues (bullying, suicidality) as core motivators for therapy

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Key Takeaways for Listeners

• Lean into your favorite demographic and issues; in a small town, you can niche as deeply as your market allows—but keep some descriptive flexibility.
• Speak directly to both parents (the “customer”) and kids (the “client”). Use video and dedicated content to build trust on both sides.
• Set your rates based on your needs and desired lifestyle, not solely market averages, offering sliding scale quietly if needed.
• Highlight areas of passion and expertise and offer variety within your preferred age group to maintain fulfillment and prevent burnout.
• Remember: Parents often seek therapy for their child at the point of crisis. Messaging should validate/normalize these struggles while offering hope and a path forward.

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Next Steps Suggested for Stephanie

• Draft a community Facebook post that introduces her unique experience and passion for tween/teen relational work.
• Create a video speaking directly to teens/tweens for her website and social profiles.
• Build website pages that address both the pain points of parents and the lived reality of middle schoolers.
• Structure pricing with clarity and confidence, considering sliding scale only as needed.
• Stay connected to her supportive network and keep iterating based on new experiences.

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Summary provided by Abundant Practice Podcast Summarizer – Episode #779: Tween/Teen Niches

Transcript

[Stephanie]

Foreign.

[Alison]

Hi, welcome to the Abundant Practice Podcast. I'm Alison 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 practice building.com Links all right, onto the show. So I've talked about therapy notes on here for years. I could talk about the features and the benefits in my sleep. But there are a couple things I want you to know about therapy notes that doesn't typically make it into an ad script.

[Podcast Coach]

First is that they actually care if

[Alison]

you like their platform. They don't only make themselves available on the phone to troubleshoot so you don't pull your hair out when you get stuck. They also take member suggestions and implement those that there's client demand for. Like Therapy Search, an included listing service that helps clients find you internal and external secure messaging clinical outcome measures to keep an eye on how your clients are progressing. A super smooth super bill process. Real time eligibility to check on your client's insurance. In my conversations with the employees there at all levels, they all really believe in their product and they want you to love it too. Second, they are proudly independently owned. Why should you care about that?

[Podcast Coach]

Because as soon as venture capital becomes

[Alison]

involved, the focus shifts from making customers happy to making investors happy. Prices go way up. Innovation plateaus. Making more money with as little output as possible becomes the number one focus. With over 100,000 therapists using their platform, they've been able to stay incredibly successful and they don't have to sacrifice your experience to stay there. You can try two months [e-mail] with the coupon code Abundant.

[Podcast Coach]

Hey Stephanie.

[Stephanie]

Hi. How are you?

[Podcast Coach]

I'm good. How are you doing? Good.

[Stephanie]

Happy Monday.

[Alison]

Yay. What would be helpful today?

[Stephanie]

Oh my gosh. Where to start? So many things. So I hopped on and ask Allison Live once in the past few months. I am a school counselor finishing out the year. This is my last official week with kids. Congrats and thank you. And transitioning into private practice. It was something that was going. I had planned on it being a three year process transitioning out of school, but for reasons that are the broken system, I have had about eight months to prepare into private practice. I am licensed in two states, licensed in Wyoming in February and Idaho in March. Recently secured an office space. All of that kind of stuff getting you know, I've gone through the abundance modules. They have been so incredibly helpful. There's no way that I could have done this without them.

[Alison]

Good.

[Stephanie]

So I. As I'm getting closer, and fortunately for me, my last paycheck is until August. So I've got some time to, you know, do things. I've already, I've already had two clients, one online and one in person in my office in Idaho. And of course, I'm planning on spending the summer ramping up. I have gotten all jumbled recently. Part of the reason that this decision became easier was there's a significant need for mental health care in the adolescent world where I live. And then within the last three months, four other new counselors have popped up and are starting practice. So it's made me kind of jumbled in terms of my niche. And my husband and I debate whether it's niche or niche.

[Podcast Coach]

Everyone works. I looked it up once.

[Stephanie]

So I think I want some guidance around that. First, I want to say, like, leaving this, what I would call dysfunctional system has made me absolutely not want to go into another one in terms of the insurance world. So that's like a no go for me. Like, I'm not doing it. It's private. You know, there's ways around. You know, I'm involved with some different mental health coalitions to serve, you know, our less fortunate populations, but that's just a no go for me. But I need to flesh out this adolescent piece.

[Podcast Coach]

Yeah, big time favorite.

[Stephanie]

Because I have a favorite. I have a favorite, but I'm panicking. Okay, say more. I'm panicking. I am a middle school counselor. I've been a middle school counselor for 16 years. They are my jam. I love the middle schoolers. I especially love the, the girls, the high achieving girls who struggle with the transition into middle school when the friendships change. I love normalizing what is developmentally appropriate, what's not. I love helping them build up the advocacy skills for having those tough conversations with friends. So everything friend drama, like, you hear parents being like, I don't want to deal with this drama. I'm like, give it to me. I love the drama and I love helping students flesh it out. And so

[Podcast Coach]

the.

[Stephanie]

I think the part where I'm getting jumbled is I hear people on here, you know, like, oh, I live in a small town. I live in a small town and it's like 15,000 people, 20,000 people. I'm talking like 3,000 people. And with the accompanying other side of the mountain, which is like 10,000 people. But I'm really focusing on the 3,000 side, so I am worried about getting too narrow. But everything I said, you know, I hear says that I need to get narrow.

[Podcast Coach]

And you've got two states to market to.

[Stephanie]

I do have two states to market to, yes. And I'm. My biggest. I've been marketing. I've been. Primarily because I'm. I've been balancing the school counseling job. It's primarily been social media. I love social media. I'm one of those people that love social media. I probably overdid it and spent too much time doing the social media. So I definitely have scaled that back.

[Podcast Coach]

We'll call that testing. You were just testing.

[Stephanie]

Well, and it did. It give me. It gave me great information on Instagram and Facebook. I saw. You know, I learned what was. People were watching and what they weren't. And so I feel like as I'm closing out this chapter, my next big push needs to be an announcement on our local community Facebook page, because that's where everybody gets their information. So now that I'm feeling, like, a little jumbled, I'm like, I want to get that. Right. I want to get that initial Facebook post out to the community. Right. And so what I'm thinking is there are a lot of kids over the summer, and I know there's the summer slump, but there are a lot of kids transitioning from fifth grade into middle school. There are a lot of kids transitioning from 8th grade into high school. There are a lot of people transitioning from high school into college. Those transitions I love, you know? And so is there a way to market, but transition over the summer?

[Podcast Coach]

I think it'd be really cool to do. Okay. I'm thinking about the size of your town. I gotta keep that in mind.

[Stephanie]

So there's like, there's 3,000 in the Driggs Victor area, which is this Idaho sister city to Jackson Hole, which, you know, the big resort town. And so. But I currently work and I've been a school counselor in Jackson for the last 13 years. So though I live in Idaho. Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

Yeah.

[Stephanie]

So I'm trying to become a part of the community over there. My name is primarily known over here in Jackson, so.

[Podcast Coach]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Stephanie]

The trickiness.

[Podcast Coach]

So I think. How far is it from Jackson to where your office is?

[Stephanie]

45 minutes.

[Podcast Coach]

Okay. Because I'm well, and this is maybe a heavy lift for starting out, but I was thinking groups could be really great, but that is a heavier lift, and you have to be so much more annoying with it. And the kids are going to know each other because it's smaller communities.

[Stephanie]

Right.

[Podcast Coach]

Okay. I want to talk about transitions, but I also want to talk about friendships.

[Stephanie]

Okay.

[Podcast Coach]

Because I think those things are really important. And I don't want you to focus on the transitions because that happens once a year. And I want you to have client flow the whole year.

[Stephanie]

Correct.

[Podcast Coach]

Middle school girls or in teens, like tweens and teens.

[Stephanie]

Tweens and teens.

[Podcast Coach]

And their relationships are a mess.

[Stephanie]

Right.

[Podcast Coach]

I've got a rising eighth grader. So, like I'm, I'm in it. I'm your, I'm the mom of your people. You know, I know how the friendships can be hard and ever changing.

[Stephanie]

Well, and I guess that's one thing, like I'm wondering about too, is there are, you know, sometimes with these friendship pieces, it's what I've loved doing as a school counselor is like bringing two girls together or their moms together. And let's sort this out. Let's learn how to talk to each other in respectful, you know, ways to walk out of here best friends. But we do need to know how to, how to walk out of here respecting, you know, respectful of the process. And so sometimes that is a long term thing that I do with girls and sometimes that's like a three session thing and we're done. And there's something that's really appealing to me about that, you know, that school counselors don't have the time for.

[Alison]

Right.

[Stephanie]

So I'm all over the place.

[Alison]

Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

But when you're a school counselor or when you're not a school counselor, it's also like a totally different ask to have two girls come in, like the other girl come in.

[Stephanie]

Correct. Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

I'm thinking too about what would need to be going on for me to be like, oh, my kid needs counseling around relationships.

[Stephanie]

Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

And so I think there's some really nice specificity you can get into there. Like, have they been ostracized? Are there text chains about, like maligning their child that they found out about? Are they ostracizing? And you're concerned as a parent about the things that you noticed when you looked at their phone, that kind of stuff. So I think drilling into that ideal client and what kind of friendship messiness

[Stephanie]

are we talking about?

[Podcast Coach]

And then you can also talk about how often these things often peak during these transitions, but then as things shift and change through the school year, continue to show up in new and different ways. So you can still kind of highlight how the start of the school year, the end of the summer These are tough times. The end of the school year. Yeah.

[Stephanie]

Okay. And. And that brings up another question of, like. And I've probably redone my website, you know, a million times, like, everybody has. But really trying to speak to who's going to be looking at my website, which I anticipate is going to be moms. And so far, that's been the case. I think being in the world of school counseling, I do know what these moms are hearing or seeing or the kids are experiencing. And part of me wants to speak to the mom and you, the girl that's coming home in tears. But also, I'm so used to my client being the student that it's really hard for me to wrap my head around not speaking to the student or kid on the website.

[Podcast Coach]

I do want you to speak to the kid on one page in a video, ideally.

[Stephanie]

Okay.

[Podcast Coach]

And to say, like. I mean, to talk like you would in session, to give them credit, you know, like, very few adults know what it's like to be you right now. It's a completely different world than when your mom was a kid. And I've been helping kids through this for the last. Yeah, 12 years. I forget. Is that what you said? 12 years?

[Stephanie]

16 years. 16 years, yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

So, like, I've. I've been helping kids through this for the last 16 years. And while I don't know what it's like to be you, because I lived a different adolescence, I have a pretty good idea of how hard it is, and I want to give you credit for it. And I also want you to have a better time. I want you to, like.

[Stephanie]

Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

Like, not mind going to school. I want your relationships to feel good, and there's some stuff you got to learn to get there.

[Stephanie]

Okay.

[Podcast Coach]

That kind of thing.

[Stephanie]

Would there be benefit on this, you know, this community Facebook page announcement of doing a video? I think that is. Or including a video that would definitely be different than what the other counselors have been doing. But also, if I direct them to, you know, if they click on my Facebook or my Instagram, there's tons of me on there in video form in.

[Podcast Coach]

Right.

[Stephanie]

You know, do I just let them see me right off the bat to get more clicks on my social media and have them do more of a deep dive into who I am, or do I just do the general accepting new clients?

[Podcast Coach]

I think anything you can do to really make you stand out. Are the other folks working with adolescents niched?

[Stephanie]

No. And that's the thing that's, like, nobody around here is really super niched. Because it's a small area and people pretty much do everything. Being a school counselor, I know who I refer out to, but they still see everybody, all of the issues. So I think. And that is some of my hesitation of doing it, is all these other counselors are full and with, like, a variety of people and issues, which is appealing. I'm. So this is what I know I'm good at right now.

[Podcast Coach]

Yeah. And you can say I work primarily with. If you want to leave some wiggle room. Are these folks all full, private pay?

[Stephanie]

No.

[Alison]

Okay.

[Stephanie]

That's the other thing is the difference between what people are charging on one side of the mountain and the other is vastly different. I mean, it's like 350 a session in Jackson. And now, like, I did market analysis on the Idaho side, and it's, you know, I'm coming in at 180, but then I have this opportunity for an office space on Fridays starting this fall in Jackson. And it's like, I don't even know if there's a possible way. You can't market two different prices to me within, you know, over state lines. And it's just. It's hard because I do get a little anxious of people on the Jackson side saying, oh, that price is too low. Like, she doesn't know what she's doing.

[Podcast Coach]

Right.

[Stephanie]

But then that's where I'm hoping. My reputation on this side and my name on this side helps me.

[Podcast Coach]

So you're wanting to charge less or

[Stephanie]

you feel like you have to? I feel like because my physical office space, because it's what I can afford, my physical office space is on the Idaho side where market analysis says 180. I have. I now recently got an opportunity for an office based on Fridays in Jackson starting this fall. I can't say, hey, if you live in Idaho, your. It just doesn't work that way. So I'm. I'm. I'm worried about charging too little.

[Podcast Coach]

Right. I would. I would charge what you would charge for Jackson. And if somebody on the Idaho side, because people don't read is, you know, if they call and they want to do a consultation and they feel like a good fit and they are like, oh, I can't do that, then you can say, would you be able to do and throw another number out there? You know, they could essentially be sliding scale.

[Stephanie]

Right.

[Podcast Coach]

So you could not advertise that. You could say, there are some sliding scale spots available.

[Stephanie]

Okay.

[Podcast Coach]

And you're also virtual. So there's also this piece of, like, you can charge the High amount. There are people in Idaho charging that amount.

[Stephanie]

Yes.

[Podcast Coach]

Like the. What you charge needs to be based on what you need to make and how many hours you want to work. Not on market analysis.

[Stephanie]

Right. Well, and that's the thing is, you know, market analysis, like, I can meet, I can meet my needs with the 180, but the, that's where the, you know, four or six weeks of vacation and, you know, well, I set four or six weeks of vacation and all of those things kind of like, I'm like, oh, that might just have to be on hold for this first year, like, while I get everything figured out.

[Podcast Coach]

Interesting.

[Stephanie]

But at the same time, I'm setting my practice up in such a way that I'm getting the life that I want. Like, I'm not working five days a week. I'm not, you know, like, I'm limiting my. I'm not doing more than 18 clients. That's what these modules have been so helpful for. Like, I am in fact, the best boss I've ever had already. Yes, yes. Well, and it's interesting that you say that because when I first started and I was licensed in Wyoming first, I did have one virtual client and they did pay my. I mean, of course I'm private pay, but at that point my rate was higher. And then they stopped because they couldn't afford. They said they couldn't afford it and I was willing to work with them or whatever, but that just didn't happen. And then when I was networking in Idaho with all the Idaho people, then they're like, oh, no, you're working. Your rate is way too high. And they're on both sides, too.

[Podcast Coach]

So my guess is there are people in Wyoming who are seeing clients in Idaho because they're licensed in both places also. And they're probably charging them the Jackson rate. And most of your referrals are going to come from Jackson because that's where your reputation is. Right.

[Stephanie]

But those are also going to be virtual. And I don't know why I can't get over this. Virtual is less, less valuable. I can work on that with my therapist.

[Podcast Coach]

And we're virtual right now. Do you feel like it's less valuable?

[Stephanie]

No, not at all. You know, and that's how I see my counselor. And so, yeah, okay. I think maybe some of it has to do with just the immediacy of, like, this was going to be a three year transition and now it's eight months and it's like, holy cow, come September, I need to be able to pay my bills.

[Podcast Coach]

Yeah.

[Stephanie]

Which is why I thought about insurance for a hot second, and then I was like, no, not doing it.

[Podcast Coach]

And if you're wanting to pay your bills and most of your referral sources are coming from the wealthier part of down, and that's who knows you.

[Stephanie]

Right.

[Podcast Coach]

That's who's already had. Those are the moms who've sat in your office to help, you know, witness their daughters work through some stuff.

[Stephanie]

Right. Well, the two clients I've had so far don't even fall within that niche, but I know that they're not all going to. Right, right.

[Podcast Coach]

Also, have you been marketing that niche, specifically

[Stephanie]

the tween niche?

[Podcast Coach]

Oh, yeah, the tween relationship piece.

[Stephanie]

I think it's been more tween, like, tween life is hard. Here to help in this, like, I did, like this Monday myth series with middle school with for parents about, you know, like, myths that were constantly, you know, like, my. My student hates their teacher. Do I need to call the school and see if I can, like, these kinds of. Oh, no. I just lost my train of thought. The bell rang. I'm sorry. Excited to get out of the

[Podcast Coach]

world.

[Stephanie]

Yeah. I feel like I have marketed to the tween niche. Some of it's been relationships, some of it's been other stuff. Would you recommend if that is my most favorite? That that is what I niched.

[Podcast Coach]

I mean, one thing you could do is, like, market to teens and tweens. And then so, like, your homepage talks about, like, life is hard because relationships are hard and feeling, like, perfectionistic at school is hard and whatever. Third thing might be, like, a part of the constellation of your favorite kid. Okay. And so you have, like, three different things underneath. Ice pictures. So, like, here's how they all interplay. Here are three things underneath. And each of those leads to a specialty page about perfectionism in the teen and tween years, about relationships being so messy and why. And like, you know, describing the parents experience of the kid coming home crying and not knowing as a parent whether to reach out to the other parents. Like, that's a messy thing of.

[Stephanie]

That is a huge.

[Alison]

Yeah.

[Stephanie]

And like.

[Podcast Coach]

And whether to reach out to the school. Like, well, this goes against their, like,

[Alison]

virtual citizenship rules that they signed and agreed to.

[Podcast Coach]

You know, all this kind of stuff. What's the actual boundary without being an asshole parent who's over controlling a situation? That's pretty normative.

[Stephanie]

Yeah. And I do feel like that's probably the strongest thing that I do in my homepage of my website is the, like, As a parent, not knowing when to step in, step back, or, like, I don't remember exactly how I have that worded, but that just felt. That felt right.

[Podcast Coach]

Yeah, yeah. And then having that. That thing, like, for teens and tweens, and that's your video where you're talking directly to them.

[Stephanie]

Okay. Okay.

[Podcast Coach]

Because I think that allows for, like, some clear specificity of the demographic you love to work with and, like, what they're struggling with.

[Stephanie]

Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

In a way that will still bring in some other people that are struggling with some of these things less hard. Like, school anxiety is less hard, but.

[Alison]

Right.

[Podcast Coach]

You know.

[Stephanie]

Right. Well, and I think as a school counselor, there's the variety of stuff that I've dealt with. My background's in clinical psychology, so I brought that therapeutic, you know, expertise to the job. But there's so many things I like and so many things I feel like I'm good at with the 16 years of, you know, everything that. Yeah. I just don't want to get bored. I do like the variety of school. That's one thing that I do really, really like.

[Alison]

Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

So make sure you touch, like, you highlight the things that you really love working with, because the friendship thing, that's going to be a thing, you know, like, all of them are dealing with that. Is that the thing bringing them to therapy? We'll see. Because, like, for me to bring my kid to therapy, and I did at one point, because she was getting bullied. She was starting to feel so bad about herself, and she just didn't have a safe environment at school. So I brought her then, but now. And that was when she was in elementary school. Now, you know, her friendships shift and change, but none of it's like, oh, I better have her talk to somebody about this, you know.

[Stephanie]

Right.

[Podcast Coach]

So, like, figuring out where that threshold is where kids will go to a school counselor, I think probably a little faster because it's accessible. It's right there. It doesn't cost anything.

[Stephanie]

Well, and now that you're saying that, like, I realize some. A lot of these girls that I'm talking about, like, are the ones that have shown up in my office with their parent or after a parent's called because they have been bullied to the point of, like, considering suicide.

[Podcast Coach]

Oh, yeah.

[Stephanie]

And so I feel like those are the ones that. Those are the ones I'm really good at.

[Podcast Coach]

Mm.

[Stephanie]

So that I could see a parent wanting to bring their kid to therapy

[Podcast Coach]

for 100 in a heartbeat.

[Stephanie]

Okay. And then that's where the other fun stuff that I Like working with them, which is building the confidence, you know, and the self advocacy skills and normalizing the friendship changes at this age and all. Okay. Where all that comes.

[Podcast Coach]

And so those could be. Some of those could be different pages. Like confidence because they might not know about the suicidality.

[Stephanie]

Yes.

[Podcast Coach]

Because not every kid's going to talk about that because we'll see. Their child is like not right.

[Stephanie]

It's those same kids that are like school refusing, you know, so there's a couple. Okay, I'm getting it. Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

It's all about that parent perspective because when they land on your website, that's what they see. It's like, oh, my God, this is exact. This was yesterday, this was Tuesday, you know?

[Stephanie]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Alison]

Okay.

[Stephanie]

Oh my gosh. That's so helpful. It's crazy how you can be wrestling with something for so long and then just talking about like this.

[Alison]

Yeah.

[Podcast Coach]

Some of us are verbal processors. Right.

[Stephanie]

Well, in that vein, you have four minutes, I think probably until your next. Give me four minutes to do what you need to do.

[Alison]

Amazing.

[Podcast Coach]

Thanks.

[Stephanie]

Thank you so much, Alison. I really appreciate you.

[Podcast Coach]

Absolutely. Keep it like keep me updated in the Facebook group. I want to hear how things are going.

[Stephanie]

Thank you so much.

[Podcast Coach]

Bye.

[Alison]

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