We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jeffrey Proctor. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jeffrey below.

Jeffrey, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What was the most important lesson/experience you had in a job that has helped you in your professional career?

Reflections from the Frontlines of Mental Health Care

Throughout my career in various roles within psychiatric hospitals, I encountered profound struggles faced by individuals grappling with mental illness. My experiences spanned residential treatment, inpatient care, and outpatient programs—commonly known as PHP and IOP. These environments are often misunderstood; they are not about “crazy people,” but rather spaces filled with teenagers and adults battling depression, anxiety, anger, and suicidal thoughts.

Working in this field means confronting the darker facets of humanity. Day after day, I witnessed the heavy burdens my patients carried, which weighed heavily on me as well. I, too, grappled with similar issues—albeit to a lesser extent—and the absence of open dialogue around these struggles in my own life made it challenging to relate fully to those in my care.

In those moments of vulnerability, I found myself needing to be a pillar of strength when my patients felt they could not stand. I had to hold space for their pain when perhaps no one else would. This role demanded immense patience and a willingness to make tough decisions, particularly when determining if a patient required a higher level of care. The most agonizing choice I faced was deciding to transition someone from outpatient to inpatient treatment due to imminent danger. In those moments, I often found myself in tears, unsure if I was making the right call.

These experiences have certainly shaped my understanding of compassion and resilience. They taught me the delicate balance of caring deeply for my clients while making decisions that they may not like but they need. Through the lens of their suffering, I learned the importance of being present for those in need—offering support without losing myself in the process. Each interaction reinforced my commitment to this work and deepened my empathy for those navigating their darkest hours.

Jeffrey, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My business is called Healing Harmony Counseling, based in Allen, TX. I specialize in working with people with ADHD, failure to launch third culture kids, and expats. These areas are deeply personal to me because I have ADHD myself and experienced living in a different country as a child. I understand these struggles firsthand and am proud to offer the kind of support I wish I’d had when I was younger.

I’ve reached this point with a lot of help from my wife and mentors. Their support has made this journey easier than I expected, mainly because I’ve been open to adapting my plans as needed. I’ve learned that people want to connect with my genuine self rather than just hear a clever marketing pitch. They need to see my real passion and commitment. That’s why I always aim to be authentic in all my interactions, both online and in person. I know what it’s like to face unique challenges that others might not understand, and I’m here to offer support in a way that truly resonates.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

For me, building my reputation really comes down to genuinely caring for other therapists. Counseling is tough work, and we really need to support each other. I love helping therapists out, especially those with their own private practices. People can usually tell when someone is just trying to connect to get clients, so at networking events, I focus on what they need and how I can be a friend. I ask about their lives and their work, sometimes without even bringing up client referrals.

When you keep showing up to networking events and connecting one-on-one, word starts to spread that you’re the real deal. People send clients my way because they know I actually care. Plus, I’ve made some great friends in the therapy field—friends I wouldn’t have met if I hadn’t put myself out there. Whether or not they refer clients to me, those connections are valuable and lasting.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Starting a career in counseling is no walk in the park. One tough part is getting through all the training to become a therapist. First off, when you’re in counseling school, about halfway through, you have to do unpaid internships that feel like having a part-time job. You’ve got a few options during this time: you can either not work and focus on your internship and classes, work part-time, or go all in with a full-time job. I chose the full-time route, juggling 60-70 hours a week, and honestly, I have no idea how I managed it.

Then there’s the whole licensing process. After you graduate and pass your national counselor exam, you’re only partially licensed. To get fully licensed, you need to rack up 3,000 hours, which can be a grind. The catch? You don’t get paid much, and you can’t take insurance. I ended up working at an outpatient psych hospital to rack up those hours quickly, which meant dealing with a pretty tough job.

When I finally transitioned to private practice, I had to balance working at the psych hospital and my new practice, which added up to about 50-60 hours a week. Looking back, I don’t know how I pulled it off. I definitely needed my own therapy during that time because self-care wasn’t really on my radar. Oh, and I was also getting married and navigating those first couple of years of marriage while all this was happening. It was a lot to handle!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.healingharmonycounseling.com/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-proctor-lpc-34b364185

Image Credits

Callie Rae Cherry at Candid Portraits took my picture.