The Solitude of Having a Therapy Private Practice
I’ve been in Marin County now for over a year after my move from San Diego. I’ve noticed that it seems to be really
hard to get to know other therapists in the area. I’ve attended local CAMFT chapter meetings and even reached out to a few but still am struggling to make solid connections with others who are in the same scenario as I am – doing private practice psychotherapy.
It may be similar to the idea that it’s harder to “make friends” as you get older and those around you are set in their lives and don’t have much of a desire or need for more. Perhaps these people have a small group of peers they consult with or even socialize with. I had this in San Diego and I’m still not quite finding the same thing. It’s a bit isolating.
I’ve been on some of the social networking sites for therapists specifically and that’s kind of interesting and fun – and I’ve definately gotten some great dialogue with other therapists on this blog (particularly when it was at it’s old home at Blogger but it seems as though I’ve lost some of my readers in the transition to my primary site – ah, the joys of technology) – but I’m still not quite feeling as connected as I’d like to be.
I’m wondering if any other therapist or counselor-types have any suggestions for me or would like to share their experiences connecting (or not connecting) with their peers while engaging in private practice work? Is this even important to you?
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Lisa Brookes Kift is a psychotherapist and creator of Notes from a Therapist’s Chair – The Therapy and Counseling Blog, a feature of The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com.
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Hi Lisa,
I just had a great afternoon with another therapist here in Northern Virginia. We were talking about the fact that it is very isolating and we both went to grad school here and know many therapists locally. I think what I’m finding, and it seems like Susan agreed, is that you have to find a way to connect with like minded therapists- I know easier said than done. We left our little coffee chat today agreeing to email our alumni listserv to see if there are other therapists in our area (with traffic Northern Virginia can seem worlds apart even though most places are no more than 20-30 miles away). Do you have any kind of alumni group out there? It is hard to make friends as adults.. even professional ones.
In the meantime it seems like virtual peer groups might be the way to go. In addition to your blog I’ve been connecting with some really interesting people on Twitter (thanks to your post a few months ago, I’m finally using it!). I know that AAMFT just launched a social networking site as well, if you’re a member.
Wish I had some really great advice for you… unfortunately I feel the same way out here. And I’m guessing that with all the writing you do you feel doubly isolated- at least I know that I do sometimes.
Because of the move between Southern and Northern California I don’t have the resources that I had down there. I imagine that might change in time – it’s only been a year. Thankfully I have a very full social and family life where I am now and it might be that I’ll need to continue to find my therapist interraction online.
Esther, thank you for your support and it’s great to be connected!
Lisa Brookes Kift, MFT
The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com