The Practice of Therapy

Gordon Brewer
This episode is brought to you by blueprint health. Blueprint health is a measurement based care platform for mental health providers. You can find out more about them by going to practice of therapy.com/blueprint health. And also this episode is brought to you by therapy notes therapy notes.com, the leading electronic health record system for mental health providers in private practice there who I use in my practice, check them out at practice of therapy.com/therapy notes.

Hello, I'm Gordon Brewer, and welcome to the practice of therapy podcast, where we explore the business and clinical sides of running a private practice.

Hello, everyone, this is episode number 229 of the practice of therapy Podcast. I'm Gordon brewer in glad you've joined me for the podcast. And if this is your first time listening in welcome, glad you found us. And I hope you'll come back for some more and take time to follow us or subscribe to the podcast wherever you might be listening to it. Looking forward to hearing from my guest today, Ashley comedy's and Ashley was actually on the podcast before and I was going back and checking. And it's been longer ago than I thought it was episode number 143. So I think, if I recall, it was about the time we were just really kidding, heading headlong into the COVID pandemic, when that came out. And so a lot of folks pivoting or maybe it was before, then I need to go back and look. But we talked about online therapy. And it was just really becoming a new thing to everybody at that point. But now I think post COVID are, hopefully we're I can safely say post COVID Maybe not for real. But anyway, online therapy has kind of become a norm. And one of the things that Ashley has really put a lot of emphasis on is helping people learn how to network and do marketing based on online therapy. And in particular, those therapists that are moms or parents that are out there, juggling all the stuff and working from home and doing therapy online. She's really created a network around that. And so you're gonna get to hear more about that from Ashley, in this particular episode. So before I get to Ashley, though, I'd love for you to go over to practice of therapy.com/webinars and putting together have put together some free webinars that you can find located there, we're going to be adding to it more later this year, it's hard to believe we're already into May. So I'm feeling a little bit of a time crunch to get some things out. But anyway, looking forward to you say checking those out, if you'll go to a practice of therapy.com/webinars. And you'll see on that landing page, the free webinar offerings that we've got for you to the most all of those are all of those are automated webinars in which you pick the time at which you get to watch, watch the webinar or take part in the webinar. And so be sure to check that out. And also, before we get to my conversation with with Ashley, I'd love for you to check out my new podcast kindness and compassion.com. And you'll find it if you'll just go to the do a search on your podcatcher kindness and compassion podcast. It don't should come up for you. But I'm getting those episodes out and had a lot of great people and people you've heard on this podcast, take part in that one. And in that podcast, what I've done, what I'm doing with that is it's really geared more towards the general public and not so much not so much niche specific, but it's really teaching people how to incorporate more kindness and compassion in their lives. And we also look at the intersection of psychology, spirituality, therapy, all of those kinds of things and how it relates to practices of kindness and compassion. So I want to commend that to you kindness and compassion.com and you can find out all about that particular podcast. And also real quickly here before we get to my conversation with Ashley love for you to check out our sponsors of the podcast. And those are blueprint health. And you can find out more about them by going to practice of therapy.com/blueprint health and also therapy notes and you can find out more about them by going to practice of therapy.com/therapy notes. And here's a little more about those two wonderful sponsors.

Rachel Bond
As your practice grows, the systems and processes you have in place will keep your practice running smoothly. That is why it is important to have an electronic health record system that is specific to mental health providers therapy notes is a complete practice management system with everything you need to manage patient records schedule appointments, meet with patients remotely create rich documentation and bill insurance right at your fingertips. Their streamline software is accessible wherever and whenever you need it. They are who Gordon uses in his practice, and did I mentioned that they are one of the top rated EHRs for mental health private practices. Their support is also second to none. Be sure to check them out at practice of therapy.com/therapy notes. Be sure to use the promo code Gordon to get two months free. Running a great behavioral health practice is hard. Payers are demanding more measurable outcomes therapists are harder than ever to hire and retain and clients expect a digitally enabled care experience introducing blueprints the all in one measurement based care platform that helps behavioral health providers grow top line practice revenue, increase clinician satisfaction, and deliver more effective care blueprints, intuitive platform, administer scores and charts hundreds of symptom rating scales to give clinicians deeper insights into how clients are progressing. And you may be eligible to earn additional reimbursement for each administered outcome measure. Get your first month of blueprint free by going to practice of therapy.com/blueprints health.

Gordon Brewer
Well, hello, everyone, and welcome again to the podcast. And I am so glad to have back with me. Ashley. comedy's welcome, Ashley, it's good to have you back.

Ashley Comegys
It's good to be back. Gordon?

Gordon Brewer
Yes, it's been a it's been a bit since we were just chatting before we started recording that it's probably been pre pandemic when we talked last. And I know you've had a lot of changes going on. And yeah, that sort of thing. So for folks that don't know about Ashley, Ashley wanted to start with just telling folks about yourself and how you've landed where you landed?

Ashley Comegys
Yeah. So I'm Ashley common GS. I'm a licensed clinical social worker, currently located in Tampa, Florida. My practice is completely online. And I work with women with anxiety, helping them to navigate life transitions such as motherhood, military life, grief, trauma and loss. My practice has been online since well, 2019 When I went solo practice, but I've been doing online work since about 2014. And I am Licensed in Louisiana, Florida, Colorado, and Hawaii. We are a military family. And so the online practice has really helped me to be able to continue to have a career while the military requires us to move around for my husband's career. So that's my practice site. And then I've been really working on supporting other mom, clinicians and other women empowering them to help grow and build their online therapy practices. So that way they can have the time freedom and flexibility to have that career and also kind of have that family life.

Gordon Brewer
Yes, yes. And what one of the things I think about for you, Ashley, is that you really kind of started into online therapy before it was really kind of something that we were kind of pushed into doing I think for some people they felt felt like that with with the whole COVID pandemic and all the changes around around everything. But yeah, it's you know, is you have kind of gone through all of this with all of this. I know one of the things that we were talking about ahead of time. I know there's two things that I want us to try to hit on. Is one is support through all of this because as I'm thinking I'm kind of thinking out loud here One of the things is, is that I think for a lot of clinicians, both moms and dads, you had to kind of juggle being at home and doing school and all of that sort of thing with kids and try to do that overlap of all this stuff. And then also just how marketing your practice has changed and networking and getting support. So, yeah, I want to hear your thoughts on all of this.

Ashley Comegys
Yeah, yeah. Well, and I think we were talking a little bit too, or, as you mentioned, like, a lot of us were thrown into the world of work seeing clients online, because of the pandemic, and a lot of us have decided either to continue doing that, or are making the switch to add it as a hybrid of seeing people in office, or, you know, and online. I also know a lot of moms who, because of exactly like you talked about, and dads to where they were maybe working for a clinic, or working for an agency, and while also trying to parent and homeschool and all of that stuff, and got a glimpse of like, okay, what would it look like to work for myself, and you know, what I, I, I need more flexibility in my career. And so have started going the online, you know, private practice route. And so, yes, the the, it does not look the same as just marketing, a brick and mortar practice. Because it does require relationship building, that's not always in person. And I think one of the really cool things about work being online, right, is that you can see somebody in any part of the state. But that also means you can build relationships with other therapists and providers and network with them in other parts of your state too. So it's not just going around and knocking on doctor's office stores nearby. But thinking a little bit I, I guess it's kind of globally, but like, depending on what states are licensed, and how do I build connections with people there, even if I'm not physically present there?

Gordon Brewer
Right. Right. And I know you've had just a lot of experience with that just being licensed in multiple states and, and really establishing a practice that was, is purely online.

Ashley Comegys
Yeah, completely online. Yeah. Yeah.

Gordon Brewer
Yeah. Yeah. That's great. That's great. So yeah, so how, how do we need to think differently? I mean, thinking about if you get down to the brass tacks of networking, and connecting with people online, I like kind of go to think about, well, you do it through social media? Are you finding that that's the best way? Are there other ways in which you find are good to connect? Well, and,

Ashley Comegys
like, let me back up a bit. Because I feel like even before we think about, like, how do we connect with people? I think we have to also kind of check in with ourselves of like, what do we think about when we come to mark or come to networking, because I think, when we're talking with people, whether we have an established practice, or we're building a practice, and you know, we hear you're supposed to network, I think a lot of us start to kind of like tense up. And we're like, network, like, we have this idea of that networking means either that knocking door to door with thought adopters or offices, or it's going to a network mixer, right? And spending this time like, you know, bumping shoulders of people, but really like, what does that time actually give you? Like, how fruitful can that be? And I feel like, I know, from my experience, like grad school and early like, you know, practice building that was kind of the thing of like, go do these things. And so I think there can be sometimes a resistance around networking, because I don't want to do those. And so kind of checking in with ourselves of like, do we have just one specific idea of what networking is, quote, unquote, supposed to be? And so how can we kind of think of it differently? I'm very big on relationship building, and, and thinking like, where's the low hanging fruit? Because especially for moms, especially for dads, parents, and let's be honest, even if we aren't a parent, if you're in practice, we Time is of the essence we're limited with time and so we need tools and I end connections that aren't going to require us require us to go to that networking event that's an hour out of our night an hour driving each way, right. So in theory, Thinking about that? Yes, I think social media can definitely be a way of building some of that connection. I think finding, you know, people that are in your niche. So let's say you specialize in working with veterans, you know, and let's say you work your license in Oklahoma, finding, you know, who else is licensed in that state? Who else is working with veterans, and building a relationship with them? Because I think one of the things that we need to think about is it this is a mutual relationship, it's not just us going and saying, Give me something right, like a lion. But how do we look at this as like a mutual kind of symbiotic relationship? I love, you know, doing zoom coffee chats, as I call them, where, you know, it is easy to kind of want to just hide behind, you know, the computer, so to speak, but the keyboard more so and, you know, send those DMS and just say, Oh, this is what I'm doing. But it's in building a bit of a relationship, that I think when I have a client that fits what you're looking for, I'm going to send them to you. So finding those people in your niche. And if it is through social media, which is definitely a great way to get a sense of where those people are who those people are saying, Hey, I see the work that you're doing. I'm also in that, that you know that that niche working with that client population, would love to jump on a zoom coffee chat with you and keep the schedule short, like tell them 20 minutes, because they think that is more likely to get that response. And it also helps so that your time is protected them too.

Gordon Brewer
Right. Right. Yeah. I've got so many great thoughts running through my head, as you were talking about all of that, you know, you're right, with the idea of networking face to face. Although, I will say that as my, that is my preference. But one of the things that you reminded me I was on a consulting call yesterday with one of the people I consult with, but one of the things that they were talking about in their practices that they had, it's they had a group practice, and they were really thinking, Okay, how much do I want to expand? How much more do I want to take on? And what we were talking about was the fact that they said, You know, I really don't see my niches working with children, we don't really have anybody in our practice that works with children, should I expand to working with children or bring on people that are working to work with children? And I said, Yeah, you could do that. But one of the things that might be better is to contact other therapists in your area that you feel comfortable in referring to. And, you know, that's one of the best, you know, word of mouth, like that is one of the most effective networking tools have anything, I was just, you know, I just recently had to get a roof on my house. And so how did I find a roofing company? Well, I talked to my neighbor who had just had their roof, right. And so that's, that's how we, that's how we connect. And that's how that's really what networking is about.

Ashley Comegys
Well, and I love that point, because I think that's where we feel like mental health professionals are really good at overcomplicating stuff. Yes, myself included. Exactly what you're talking about, but it is the relationship. And it is, like I said, the where's the low hanging fruit? I mean, I think how many times have we had a friend say, Hey, I've got a cousin or a neighbor that's going through something or they lost a mother and they're needing someone to talk to? Who would you recommend? Right? They're not always necessarily coming to you, as you know, wanting you meeting you as their therapist, but who would you recommend? And so, when you are networking and building just relationships with other people, if your friend knows, Hey, Ashley sees clients for grief you know, when her neighbor asks, you know, do you see any you know, anybody for green than they can connect it to you? And I think exactly to your point. I always you know, really encourage and this is part of that like we don't always have a lot of time to network but who in your kind of easy close kind of sphere can you you know, let know Hey, I'm I have this practice or Hey, yep, I'm in this specific niche or niche however you want to say it? Yeah. And I'm thinking people like, your like your friends, your neighbors, your church, you know, whether it's your pastor or you know, another religious group that you're a part of people that you're in community with. I even my own doctor, whenever I take my kids to the pediatrician and they find out I'm a therapist, do you work with kids, right? because there are people that they always have parents coming, you know, saying I need somebody for my kid, or if you work in, you know, maternal mental health, your OBGYN, they're always looking for somebody to refer out to. So again, it doesn't have to be this, like super formalized, you know, network of, you know, even bringing, you know, cupcakes and stuff to the doctor's office, but just that you're gonna know, hey, this is something I do. And you know, I can give you my information, leave it at the front desk, because that would be best. But it really is about that relationship. Because like you said, you're gonna want to know who's from your neighbor, who do you trust for your roof? Right, right. And they're not going to say, Well, this guy was bad. So you should probably go and like, they're gonna recommend somebody that they trust.

Gordon Brewer
Right, right. Yeah. And that's, yeah. And that's, that's the whole whole bottom line to networking and marketing. And that sort of thing is, is positioning yourself in a place there with the people that are looking for. I mean, people are already looking for help, right? It's going on all the time, is positioning yourself in a place where people can find you?

Ashley Comegys
Easily. Exactly. Exactly. Yeah, exactly.

Gordon Brewer
Yeah. And you're right, that those relationships are so. So key to that I just, just as we're recording this as well, I just got done. Being at a conference first face to face conference, I've been to the faith and practice conference that was done by Whitney Oh, and it was so good to connect with those other therapists face to face, but I can promise you that if I get in, it happens quite often people will come to me, Oh, I've got a brother or sister that's having trouble. And they live in such and such? Well, I'm gonna remember those people that I connected with that I can refer them to.

Ashley Comegys
Exactly, exactly. Well. And I think to that point, then to like, one of the, you know, one of the beauties of online practice exactly like you were saying, like, I may live in Tampa, but somebody says, I've got, you know, a relative in Jacksonville, Florida, do you know of a therapist there, and maybe that person is wanting in person, but maybe they're open to online, so that opens up the vast majority, or just opens up to more possibilities for therapists. And in that same way, you know, there are more clinicians, and I definitely asterik this, I don't advocate for just going and getting more state licenses. But there are therapists and providers who are licensed in multiple states. And so having connections of like, okay, yeah, I do know that this person is licensed in Oregon, or I do know of somebody who, you know, sees clients in California. And I, yeah, I have them as a referral source. And then the other part of that, too, I think we are in a more global transient world now. And so, you know, I think back, especially to the beginning of the pandemic, where a lot of people who work with college students, where they were getting sent home, and there was a lot of this question of like, Can I continue to work with them? Because they're not in a state where I'm licensed? And, you know, I know, there has been a little there is, you know, the compact law that's kind of trying to push for some of that, and there are some states that will allow it, but a lot of times, it's no, I can't and so who is licensed there, or we have, you know, if you work with military community, they move a lot or, you know, even if it's not a military family, somebody else who travels for work, right? So knowing, okay, I've got somebody that they are in the same type of field that I am, they do the same type of work, you know, maybe they want someone that's EMDR trained, because you are, I've got this connection built there. So that way, it's not it can be an easy kind of warm handoff versus just here's a number of kind of call them

Gordon Brewer
right, right. Yeah. So lots to think about with all with all of those things. And I think that, again, you're going back to what you said earlier, it's all about building relationships with it.

Ashley Comegys
And yeah, no, it definitely is,

Gordon Brewer
you know, that's, again, not to get too far off on a tangent, but I was just reminded of a conversation I had with another, another therapist as well, and just how, you know, I think traditionally, in years past, a lot of our contact with other therapists and stuff were through our trade organizations, you know, like ACA and national, social workers, workers and am a tea and those kinds of things. Yeah. But some of those kind of organizations are not as much in the forefront, as they once were. And so pay or connecting and in other ways,

Ashley Comegys
right, right. Well, and I think, yeah, like, those are great events to, like, see people or connect, but I think unless you're kind of going in with the mentality of, I want to build a relationship with a person who is licensed in this area, and working with this, that it can sometimes feel a little futile. I mean, I think of after I graduated from with my masters, you know, the university having like an alumni night, during homecoming, it was come and network with one another. And like, we got some, you know, free drinks and good food, but there wasn't really relationships built there. And it does take an intentionality. And so like, to your point of, you know, in face to face networking versus, you know, through the computer, I think, being clear of what is it that you're wanting to build in this relationship, right, you know, if you are somebody who you're still in the process of growing your practice, and you're reaching out to somebody that's licensed in a state, you're licensed and saying, Hey, I just want to share a little bit about what I'm doing. And if you happen to have too many referrals, or somebody that's not a good fit for you, for whatever reason, or availability, please send them my way. Because I do have openings. I mean, I know a lot of us can relate to. There's just a flood of constant referrals the last few years and a lot of us are like, I want to help as many people but it's then to our detriment and burnout. And so how can we support one another in our practices where there are people who do still need clients? And we also need to be able to refer to people that we know, again, it's not just a, you know, a name, it's actually again, that relationship that we have a trust built with them?

Gordon Brewer
Yes, yes. And yeah, I know, again, just to change gears a little bit, I know, you and I were talking ahead of time, you're, you're really putting some stuff together to help people with that whole whole problem. You want to say, Yeah, talk about that.

Ashley Comegys
Yeah. So we, I recently launched something called village, which is a community for women and mom, clinicians to network and refer with each other. And the idea is, you know, we always say it takes a village. And that in our practice, you know, in our professional lives, we need that village to, and so what the idea is kind of three, kind of three or two fold. So kind of what I was saying where there are those of us who we are getting more referrals, and we can even answer the phone for, and what do we tend to do when we get those, you know, people seeking help, we either say go check Psychology Today, or, you know, I'm I'm full or and I don't know anybody else, or we go post in like a Facebook group. And I always say we hope that the unicorn finds it right? Because we are wanting somebody in this state that takes this insurance and is for you know, works with this population. And it's just a hope that maybe somebody sees that, right? They may not even be in that group. And so I know a lot of us have really struggled the past couple years where we know people really need help. But we also have to have boundaries and say, I can't see everybody, right. And so then you have the other need that I've been seeing is that there are those who are saying, I'm ready to leave that clinic I've been in or I'm, you know, coming out of maternity leave and raising kids and I'm wanting to start a practice or I have started it and I'm really needing more referrals. I'm having a hard time finding them. And so how can we kind of address these two problems together. And so village was created to help support one another in that right, as someone who has more referrals than I can handle. I want to support somebody who's trying to still build their practice, right? Like I want to give them to you and send a referral your information knowing that you have an opening, right? Because a lot of times, if we're just you know, saying go check out on a directory or something like that. We don't know if they're gonna get an answer from that provider or if that providers fool. So it's this idea of how do we again, support one another to empower each other in those in our practice? And so then, so it's yeah, it's this ability to refer out and to gain these referrals. And then the other exciting part of this community is that as we are building these relationships? You know, one of the things a lot of times, clinicians, especially women, I find struggle with starting practices like, well, if I decide to have a child or I'm, I'm pregnant, what do I do for maternity leave? And when you're in solo practice, there's no backup team, right? So building a relationship, and networking with other providers is a way to help have coverage for that, right. So it's not this, what Who do I look for but when you join village, you have access to all of the providers that are part of that you're able to search to see, you know, who is licensed in Alabama is willing to cover maternity leave, who is licensed in you know, Wyoming and has openings, you know, and you're able to then connect with those with each other. So that way, again, it's it's a symbiotic relationship of support. Because again, like, we need to build the village, we need to wagon and support each other in this. Yes,

Gordon Brewer
it's it's a brilliant idea. Actually, it's, yeah, just thinking about I've got a clinician, right now, in my practice, this getting grant will be going on maternity leave. Yeah, towards in a few more months. And so yeah, yeah. And so I was just thinking, you know, we're, we're group, brick and mortar practice. So it's a little different that this whole situation of being online, okay. You just don't You don't want to you don't want to abandon your clients. And all right. Yeah. I love that. I love that. Yeah.

Ashley Comegys
Well, and even if you are brick and mortar, but if you're by yourself, right, if you're in soloqueue, or not in a group, how do you have, you know, it may not be that if a client is a need during your maternity leave, you know, that they're going to be seen in office, but that there is somebody else that can support them during that time. And the the thing to have this is, it's not just about maternity leave, but also about family emergency leave, you know, I know many clinicians who suddenly they've had a family member pass away, or a kid gets sick, you know, and they're like, I cannot be there for my clients during this time. What am I supposed to do? And so having those relationships built, having this place that you can easily go to to say, I'm looking for this specific type of provider, and building that relationship can be so helpful, so that it's not another crisis during a time of crisis for you. Oh, right,

Gordon Brewer
right. Oh, gosh, I love this. So tell folks how they can connect with this.

Ashley Comegys
Yes. So if you go to Bitly, forward slash village therapists, you can read all about village and you can sign up there, I've made it super low cost, it's five bucks a month just to help make this an easy thing. And if you use the code, three Village free, you get your first three months for free.

Gordon Brewer
Awesome, awesome. Well, we'll have those, those links here in the show notes and stuff for people to access easily. Well, Ashley, I want to be respectful of your time. And this is, this is just some great stuff. And I really think that you've got a great concept here for people to build on and, and to be able to really kind of be able to embrace this new kind of online world. And yeah, really building successful practices online.

Ashley Comegys
Yes, yeah. I'm excited for where things are, and just to continue to support everybody.

Gordon Brewer
Yes, that's great. So tell folks again, how they can get in touch with you if they want to connect? And yeah, again.

Ashley Comegys
Yeah, my website is raised to empower.com, which will be I'm sure in the show notes. And then I also have a Facebook groups, Facebook group called Moms building online therapy practices with Ashley comma, geez, I think the link is in the show notes, too. So you can head over there and join us there as well. But yeah, that's those are the best and easiest ways to connect with me.

Gordon Brewer
Yes. And again, like you said that all that'll be in the show notes for people to easily access so well, actually, I hope we get together sooner rather than later. Thanks for me and on on the podcast. And we'll also have links to Ashley's first interview with me which is again a few years ago, but as I recall, our conversation was around being being practicing in multiple states. So I think it's a good good reference point for people. So what happens from that as well, so, so, hope to see you again here soon, actually.

Ashley Comegys
Me too. Thank you, Gordon. It was such a pleasure talking with you.

Gordon Brewer
Well, again, big thanks to Ashley for joining me in this episode of the podcast and be sure to check out her things by going to Bitly. Slash village therapist and you can find out more about what she has to offer there. And there'll be links here in the show notes in the show summary for you to access that more easily. You know, what I what I love about folks like Ashley is just taking those, finding those needs that are needed in our communities, and really figuring out a way to kind of solve the problems. And I think she's really recognized the importance of being able to find support, particularly for parents or moms and that sort of thing that are, are juggling all the stuff with taking care of kids, and also trying to run a business and doing all of it online and that sort of thing. And being able to have an outlet to connect to the to other people to get that support that we all need. You know, one thing I'll say is that none of us should be going this totally alone, seek out support, seek out mentors, seek out peers that are going to help you in this journey. Because, as you probably well know, this can be very hard and challenging work, especially helping helping car clients helping our patients deal with the things that they're dealing with. So, again, check it out. Again, links here in the show notes. And thanks again to Ashley for joining me for this particular episode. Also, before we go would love for you to check out the free webinars that I've got available. And you can find out more about them by going to practice of therapy.com/webinars to find out about those free resources. And you can just also go to practice of therapy.com and find out about all the resources that I've got available for folks. We're still working on getting some revamps to the website and getting some new stuff out there new content, and maybe a new look to some of the different landing pages that you'll find on the website. So be sure to check it out practice of therapy.com. And also, as a reminder, check out our sponsors, blueprint health, and you can find out more about them by going to practice of therapy.com/blueprint health, then also therapy notes therapy notes.com. Or you can go to practice of therapy.com/therapy notes and find out more about all that they have to offer. therapy notes is the leading electronic health record system for mental health providers in the private practice space. So they're who I use in my practice, so can't say enough about them. So they're they're great folks to know. So take care folks, glad you join me. Be sure and take time to subscribe or follow rather follow us wherever you listen to your podcasts. So glad you're with me on this journey. You have been listening to the practice of therapy podcast with Gordon Brewer, part of the psych craft network of podcasts. Please visit us at practice of therapy.com For more information, resources and tools to help you in starting, building and growing your private practice. And if you haven't done so already, please sign up to receive the free private practice startup guide and practice of therapy.com The information in this podcast is intended to be accurate and authoritative concerning the subject matter cover is given with the understanding that neither the host guests or producers are rendering legal accounting or clinical advice. If you need a professional, you should find the right person for them.