Thoughts on the Ghosting Clinician
Without disclosing too much, this week I woke up on Monday morning and said to myself “I need a therapist.” So I went to the site I use and started looking for consultations. Twice clincians rejected my requests without even a comment as to why. I realized from a clinican’s standpoint that we are getting an onslaught of requests and it is somewhat hard to keep up and communicate with everyone, but from a client perspective I realized….it doesn’t feel good. In fact it feels pretty bad. As a client, you are already feeling kind of vulnerable putting yourself out there then having a clinician ghost you can put you right off. So to that end I am making a commitment that I will not be ghosting, even if I don’t have the bandwith. Everyone deserves encouragement for taking that first step and I can do that no matter how busy I am. I am also starting a waitlist so people can at least feel like they are getting somewhere. This is something that I may mess up on, but going forward promise to try really hard not to.
Happy living out there, everyone!
Two more books completed!
Just popping in to say that I’ve completed two more books off of my list! In February I completed Thanks for the Feedback, and Difficult Conversations. Can’t help but think that if we all read these books, things would be going a lot smoother in this world. That and being passive aggressive isn’t as skillful as I thought it was. I am reading I’m Judging You, by Luvvie Ajayi starting today. So far, I am loving it. Can’t wait be better at doing better.
Just maintaining this to keep the momentum going! 3 books down, and an ever-growing pile to go!
One Book Down!- Platonic
In the continuing interest of accountability, I wanted to proudly report that I have finished reading Platonic by Dr. Marisa G. Franco, PhD. I could not recommend this book enough! I, in fact, have been pushing it hard on clients for a couple of reasons:
It’s a pretty clear step by step guide on how to make and BE a friend.
It’s a fun and engaging read. I struggle with reading anything that is not fiction, and this one held me. It is full of earmarks, post-its, and notes in the margin.
It’s backed by research but is easy for non-researchy people (like me) to understand. I’m embarrassed to admit that even though I’ve been a practicing Social Worker for over ten years, I feel like I finally more fully understand attachment styles after reading this book.
I also feel like there are a lot of lessons in here not just on friendship, but just how to be a human.
So, I do highly recommend this one. I know it’s my first but I’m so glad I finally took the time to read it, given that I actually purchased it all the way back in April. Like the bookmark from my DSM tabs told me a few weeks ago, you don’t fail until you have given up.
Yesterday I started reading Thanks for the Feedback, by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen. I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I have owned this book since 2017 and it looks like it’s been through the washing machine because I carried it around for months with the best of intentions, but I have already gotten further than I did during my first attempt 7 years ago!
Happy Reading Everyone!
Happy New Year- My 2024 Reading list
Hello Everyone!
I want to start off this little post by sharing my word of the year: Intention. Dolly Parton said “Find out who you are, then do it on purpose.” I’ve decided that 2024 is the year when I will do things on purpose. I’m not going to wait until I have time to do something this year. If I want to find joy this year, I am going to do so with intention. I’m going to find it, instead of waiting for it to find me, then feeling all sad when the joy eludes me. So intention. One part of this is that I’m going to do some learning. I am going to finish my VSW and become a certified Animal-Assisted Intervention Specialist (AAI-S). Ollie is going to work on becoming a canine good citizen (although it seems so far this year, his resolution is to do as little listening as possible. We are going to have to have a chat about this at some point- LOL), The other learning I’m planning on doing is reading some of the 100’s of books I’ve accumulated over the past few years and have not read. To this end. I will be sharing the list I have chosen for this year. My goal isn’t all of them because I need to keep this a SMART goal.
Platonic, by Marisa G. Franco, PhD (I’ve already started this one and so far I love it! Gonna make so many friends! COMPLETE!
Thanks for the Feedback, by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen COMPLETE!
Atomic Habits, by James Clear
The Grief Recovery Handbook, by John W, James and Russell Friedman and The Grief Recovery Handbook for Pet Loss, by Russell Friedman, Cole James and John W. James
The Body is Not an Apology, by Sonya Renee Taylor
I Thought it Was Just Me (But it Isn’t), by Brene Brown
I’m Judging You, by Luvvie Ajayi
Difficult Conversations, by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen COMPLETE
The Body Keeps the Score, by Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD
The Wisdom of Your Body, by Hillary McBride, PhD
Mothers, Daughters, and Body Image, by Hillary McBride, PhD
Becoming Attached, by Robert Karen, PhD
Intuitive Eating, by Evelyn Tribole, MS, RDN, CEDRD-S, and Elyse Resch, MS, RDN, CEDRD-S, FAND
So there it is, my accountability to anyone who reads this and most importantly myself. I am an Amazon Affiliate, but I don’t think I used my links because I’m not trying to make money here, but just in case I wanted to disclose. Looking forward to reading these and seeing if anyone else does too. I will do my best to write about each one as I finish.
Happy New Year, Everyone!
Jamie
Welcome to my practice
People have been telling me for years to just go hang my own shingle and practice social work on my own and I resisted because frankly, it’s a little scary. But here we are. I want to share about my journey to where I am so you can understand what kind of therapist I am.
I changed careers when I was in my 30’s. I was in business, I was going to own restaurants. But I realized that while I loved the “people” part of the business, I was not so into the “business” side of the business. I had crippling anxiety and depression, I got treatment, and realized that this is where I would be most helpful to the world and where I would be the most fulfilled. So, when you come into my office and sit across from me, know that I have been in that chair and I know a little about how it feels.
I spent the first 9 years of my social work career in community mental health providing in home family therapy, and outpatient therapy. I managed programs, I supervised clinicians. I have learned A LOT. And I love to keep learning and finding my passions.
Therapy with me is infused with humor and irreverence. Expect to be supported but also expect to be challenged. Expect to work. You will get out of therapy what you put in. Expect me to tailor your treatment to your needs and pick and choose pieces of many evidenced based practices to give you what you need. Expect me to be open to feedback. If you need something from me that I am not giving you, tell me. I love and thrive in feedback. Expect me to not know all the answers but know I’ll be willing to find out. I will work as hard for you as you work for yourself. Expect also that there may be a slightly overweight schnauzer lounging at our feet as he learns to become a therapy dog that I will use in practice. If this sounds like a space you would like to try, welcome. I am ready to work.