We recently connected with Mollie Montgomery and have shared our conversation below.
Mollie, appreciate you joining us today. Can you share an important lesson you learned in a prior job that’s helped you in your career afterwards?
Gladly, one experience immediately comes to mind. Feeling woefully inadequate, I was sitting in supervision during my graduate school internship where I was counseling survivors of domestic violence, I’m fumbling over my words and grappling with the sentiment-how can I possibly be helpful to people who are going through such intense and horrifying experiences, experiences I have not personally had? My supervisor, one of the wisest and most loving people I’ve known, looked at me reassuringly and said “you’re not more than one situation away from being in the client chair.” This was the foundational experience to one of the most important lessons I have learned in this field; No one is exempt from pain, and when in our pain we don’t need a solution we need a compassionate companion. Be it in working with survivors of domestic violence, trafficking, families with involvement in the child welfare system, the justice system, hospitalizations or psychiatric treatment, I continue to find the wisdom in my supervisor’s comment; to embrace our lack of control, our common human condition, and simply be with the other in the midst of their pain. Whatever brought us into the therapy room, the conditions needed to heal and grow are the same; to be loved, to be heard, to be ourselves, to be supported, to be safe, to feel connected. When these things are part of our environment we are able to thrive and navigate any pain or stressor life throws at us.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?
My name is Mollie Montgomery and I’m a licensed clinical social worker. I feel so blessed to have fallen into this industry. I applied for graduate school not knowing what else to do after college. While in graduate school I had a personal mental health crisis that quickly narrowed my path of interest as I needed to understand how the brain worked and why I was experiencing the symptoms I was experiencing. Through study, therapy, continued learning and finding supportive mentors, and teachers I am able serve others as their counselor from a healthy place. My personal mental health journey has significantly shaped my passion for this work and how I work with clients as I see the most important responsibility of my role as a therapist is to offer a safe, compassionate, and non-judgmental space for anyone who wants to make changes in their life and explore their inner world. My approach uses a variety of mind-body and mindfulness interventions and stems strongly from my beliefs and understanding in the body and minds ability to heal itself and move towards wholeness when the right environment is present. I also find it important to move away from pathologizing labels in the healing process. Curiosity and acceptance are essential for deeper understanding of oneself in the world and, from that place, to empower oneself to live wholly and authentically. Ultimately, I am deeply grateful for the people who have loved and supported me in my healing journey and continue to do so. I hope that in doing this work I am able to join them in having received such care and support, I can now offer it to others.
Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?
Other than ongoing trainings and learning opportunities I have found the most important aspect for succeeding in this field is being committed to doing your own work. To be able to show up for your clients, guide and support them in their own process of healing, and be committed to holding space for the other without agenda (conscious or subconscious guiding the process), it is essential to follow the age old adage of practice what you preach. One of my favorite trauma people, Gabor Mate, jokingly talks about how unwanted children grow up to be therapists because if they cant be wanted, they learn to be needed. Through the humor, and hint of truth, there is an important invitation for self reflection-know oneself, know your motives, beliefs, and how experiences and unmet needs may be driving behavior and coloring perspective. This knowledge is essential to hold space for another and allow that space to truly be their own, to do this the therapist must deeply know themselves so they know where they end and can learn where the client begins.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
Upon graduating school I did research and found what I believed to be my dream job. I applied for months, multiple times, constantly checking their website for openings. After a few rejections and even more no replies I got an email with an offer for an interview. As the interview process continued and the opportunity began to look more concrete, I got more and more invested, solidifying the pedestal I had placed this agency on. I got the job. I was quickly disappointed, disillusion set in and I left in 7 months. While in it, this was a hard pill to swallow as in addition to all the reasons I did not fit with in the job, I felt disappointed, angry, and confused. The place I had built up in my mind as the gold standard felt like it was crumbling before me. However, more difficult than the disappointment in the place were the truths I had to come to face about myself. I had a tendency to put people and things on pedestals that did not belong there. I can ignore red flags in a decision making process and convince myself I’ll clean it up on the other end. I would need to hold these lessons and others close as I made my next move. Not without hiccups or lessons, but this was the point I decided to start my private practice. It was a huge pivot, and not something I had considered previous to this moment in time. But as I’m noticing is a theme in my life, with support, encouragement and patience from the people around me that I trust and value I took the risk, and I’m very happy I did.
Contact Info:
- Website: mmontgomerylcsw.com