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

KathyDan, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

Set your therapy practice up the way you would like it to look in five years! That was the key piece of advice that I used to navigate moving into owning my own marriage and family therapy practice. One of the things I looked forward to moving away from in community mental health was the copious amount of required paperwork. When I began my practice, I knew that if I opted for a private pay model I would avoid getting bogged down in insurance provider paperwork. It also freed me from having to provide a mandatory diagnosis in order to receive reimbursement, which aligned with me ethically. Why should someone looking to improve their mental health or relationship HAVE to receive a diagnosis? Overall, it was slower to build the practice; however, the therapeutic work eventually spoke for itself and we continue to gain momentum.

KathyDan, 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 am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Florida Supreme Court Certified Family Mediator, Qualified Parenting Coordinator, Divorce Counselor, Certified Premarital Counseling Facilitator, trained Collaborative Divorce Neutral Facilitator, and EMDR therapy practitioner. I specialize in treating couples and individuals with relationship dilemmas.

Working in the mental health field for the past 16 years, my practice has expanded to include a variety of settings including clinics, homes, schools, non-profit organizations, private practice, and as Clinical Director at a community mental health facility. I have a unique approach to therapy which includes intuition, compassion, sense of humor, optimism, and collaboration. I specialize in treating trauma, anxiety and depression, as well as a focus on couples therapy, affair recovery, breakup and divorce, parenting, postpartum concerns, and the complex issues of joint custody and blended families.

Being a wife and mother of two children and four bonus children, I have a deep understanding of what it takes to balance these roles, while taking care to remember it’s important to still fulfill your life’s potential. I have always been passionate about helping others to regain charge of their life, guiding individual clients and families even in the toughest times. As a result, I have a high standard of practice, which in turn allows my clients to get the best quality of personalized services.

I began my journey with a Bachelor’s degree from Tulane University in Communications and a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology with a specialty in Marriage and Family Therapy from Antioch University in Los Angeles, California. Before becoming a therapist in St. Petersburg and creating KDM Counseling Group, I worked in marketing and television production and I am certified in Level 1 and 2 of Gottman Method Couples Therapy, as well as Affair Recovery.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

Curiosity is one of the most important ingredients to becoming a successful and productive therapist. There are many different therapeutic models and intervention approaches that can be highly effective; however, if you don’t have a genuine curiosity about the client you will miss the important nuances that makes each situation unique.

There is actually skill involved in offering true curiosity. It requires asking open-ended, non-judgmental questions with no agenda. A skilled therapist must remain curious when someone is expressing an opinion or point of view that we don’t necessarily like or agree with. The goal is to help people improve their lives and being curious, without judgment, helps you get there.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

At the beginning of opening my group practice, we were open to seeing anyone and everyone. Then I started to pay attention to what clients I most enjoyed and appeared to be making the biggest impact. That’s when I decided to focus on relationship counseling as a niche. We start focusing on increasing our knowledge around couples counseling and getting certified in Gottman Couples Counseling and Affair Recovery. Niching into what you enjoy helps grow your confidence and knowledge, which in turn, expands your clientele.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kdmcounselinggroup.com/
• Instagram: kdmcounselinggroup
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KDMCounseling
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathydanmoore/

Image Credits
Ryan McGibney Valerie Bogle Photography