We were lucky to catch up with Annie Targos recently and have shared our conversation below.

Annie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you get your first job in the field that you practice in today?

In my mind, most people know what they want to be “when they grow up.” I knew I wanted to go into social work, but the field is so very broad. Many people equate social workers with “people who take kids from their parents,” but that is such a small part of the field. Social workers serve in schools, hospitals, hospice, government, foster care and adoptions, social service centers, mental health, and the list goes on. I truly had no idea in which part of the field I wanted to serve!

I had just finished my Master of Social Work degree and was 4.5 months pregnant with my first child when my husband’s job sent us to middle-of-nowhere Oklahoma. There’s a need for social work just about everywhere, but I was still concerned about being able to find a job that would pay my student loans and childcare needs, as well as connecting with a new community—not to mention what it would be like transitioning into work as a first-time mom! When my son was six months old, I had applied for several social work-related jobs that were near us. I got one interview. That’s how I began my role as a case manager at a community mental health center. Almost immediately after being hired, my boss offered me the opportunity to go under clinical supervision to become a licensed clinical social worker—in other words, a therapist!

As I said before, I didn’t know quite what I wanted to be “when I grew up,” but I tell you what—I never expected to become a therapist. Life can be funny that way! I completed 4,000 supervision hours in about 2.5 years and passed the national exam to become independently licensed (and also had another baby!). Community mental health often has a reputation for being a high-stress and low-pay environment, but I am beyond thankful for the invaluable experience and many wonderful relationships created in the time I was there.

Annie, 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?

I started my psychotherapy private practice, Annie Targos Therapy, at the beginning of 2022 (shortly after my third baby!). Starting my own business is another story about things I never expected to happen, but did. Ha! I work mainly with adults who have experienced trauma. Early in my therapist career, I read a book that completely changed my understanding of mental health, and I made it my goal to focus on modalities and education that are geared towards trauma, such as EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). I help clients learn practical techniques and reprocess events of the past to develop insight, and ultimately, create lasting change. Through our work together, we aim to free their minds from limiting and painful memories and beliefs, so they can experience more internal harmony and live the purposeful, abundant life they want.

I know how difficult it can feel for my clients to share such vulnerable pieces of their lives, and I don’t take that lightly. It’s a privilege for me. As a therapist, I am usually described as warm, genuine, judgment-free, and sometimes humorous. I believe humor is good medicine!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Especially in the past year, I’ve had to learn that money is not bad. I’ve spent most of my life believing that money is bad/evil. That’s a pretty limiting belief when you’re setting out to be an entrepreneur! I don’t blame anyone for this belief—it just developed over time from different messages I’ve received over my lifetime. Instead, I’ve had to do a lot of work on my own brain to understand that money is just a tool. It’s neutral. What we do with it gets messier, but in and of itself, it’s neutral.

I’ve noticed a sort of unspoken belief in the social work community that we should be doing hard work for pennies, because that’s just who we are. I really latched onto this. We advocate like heck for the communities we serve to have better lives, but somehow forget (or refuse) to do that for ourselves. Since starting my own therapy practice, I have had to learn that it is 100% okay for me to charge enough for me to support my family. The services I provide are valuable, and if I’m putting myself in financial strain to be more accommodating, I’m doing everyone a disservice because I’m certainly not showing up as my best self. I’ve learned this the hard way. So now, I’m just trying to do for myself and my family what I would do for my clients!

Access to quality mental health care is certainly lacking. That is not lost on me. This is part of a much larger, systemic problem, and I will always advocate for this to change on a macro level.

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

I have no trouble identifying as a therapist, but I have had a heck of a time identifying as an entrepreneur! Becoming an entrepreneur this year has been scary for me. SCARY! I have no background in business (they didn’t teach us that in grad school!) and have never considered myself particularly business-minded. But we don’t grow in our comfort zone, right? I have spent this whole year outside of my comfort zone, unlearning certain beliefs, learning new ones, learning new skills, developing new habits, and going through lots of trial and error. My personality is not static! I am capable of learning and growing. No longer am I just a therapist—I’m a social media/marketing manager, bookkeeper, scheduler, etc. I can’t tell you how many times this year when I thought, “Man, it would be so much easier to just quit and work for someone else.” I have really had to tap into my resilience this year, ask for help when I’ve needed it, and have patience with myself.

Contact Info:

• Website: annietargostherapy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annie.targos.therapy/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/annie.targos.therapy/

Image Credits
Sarah Targos