Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rebecca Ogle. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rebecca, looking forward to hearing all of your stories 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?

Before opening my own solo private practice, I had worked in community mental health for five years – seven if you include my unpaid internships. My privilege and cultural capital were integral to my ability to open my own practice. Due to my dual income marriage, my husband and I were able to make ends meet without me having to have more than one full-time job. Many social workers, including those with Master’s level degrees, have to work two or three jobs – especially here in Chicago where the cost of living was high. Because I only had one full-time job and no children at the time, I was able to learn how to open my own practice on my commute, and during evenings and weekends. I did so by listening to podcasts, reading blogs, and talking to other professionals. I had access to generational wealth, I was still on my parents’ phone plan, and they were paying my car payments. Also, I was able to get on my husband’s health insurance, which is a major factor preventing many people from going into private practice. If you aren’t able to get on anyone else’s health plan in private practice, you have to obtain insurance on the marketplace, which often costs upwards of $400 monthly with an enormous deductible. While I don’t have a background in business, I had access to a great, post-secondary education which prepared me well for presenting myself as a professional and marketing myself to others. I say all of this, not to discount my own work and bravery in starting my own private practice, because it definitely took both those things. But too many stories about opening your own business overlook white and class privilege. There are so many amazing clinicians out there who deserve to have their own practice, but are struggling to do so because of barriers I did not have to face.

Even with all my advantages, it took a lot of time to get my business going. I was ready to take clients in October 2019, but didn’t get my first private practice client until around the holidays. For a couple of months, I did my solo practice after work. I’d drive an hour to my job in community mental health, work from 9 am – 5 pm, drive an hour home, scrounge for food, and see private practice, teletherapy clients from 7-8 and 8-9 pm. It was awful. But then COVID happened. It’s terrible to say, but COVID meant working from home, which ended up being good for my business. I was able to save two hours a day on my commute and devote more time to marketing. It also meant that a lot more people were looking for telehealth appointments, and my referrals increased.

I do not think owning a solo private practice is for everyone. Being your own boss is not easy. Learning how to do your own billing is not easy. Adjusting to inconsistent monthly income is not easy. But if you crave the creative and clinical freedom that private practice offers, you are absolutely capable. There are so many free resources out there, and so many people you can pay to do the stuff you don’t know or want to learn how to do.

Rebecca, 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 Clinical Social Worker and psychotherapist for adults. As a social worker, I have a responsibility to advocate for social justice and systemic change according to the social work code of ethics, as well as my personal value system. This is what sets me apart from other psychotherapists. Examining how institutions and systems contribute to individuals’ mental health is central to the work I do with therapy clients.

Outside of the therapy room, I am active in local organizing and politics. Specifically, funding accessible, public mental health services in Chicago, and de-funding the police to do so.

With all of that said, I want to make it clear that I am not an expert in anti-oppressive or liberatory therapy practice. I am dedicated to a lifetime of learning in order to provide good quality mental health services to BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and disabled folks.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

My plan was to work in community mental health settings for the entirety of my career. But by 2019, after working in community mental health for five years (seven including my internships), I was so burnt out I could not continue. I was coming home enraged every day about the low pay, high caseloads, and bureaucracy that made it difficult for me to provide quality therapy. I was also furious about aspects of the job I could not control – the poverty my clients lived in, their disabilities no one bothered to learn about, and the lack of funding or concern from the state. My burnout was beginning to affect my personal life as well as my career. So although it was never my plan, I started a private practice. It was on the side at first, teletherapy from my home, in fall 2019. But I was able to go full-time almost a year later. I’m so glad I did. In private practice, I have figured out a way to stay true to my values while still providing for myself and my family.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

For anyone who is starting a private practice, I highly recommend the Selling the Couch podcast by Melvin Varghese. This was the biggest resource that made me realize I was capable of beginning a practice. I cannot thank Melvin enough for all of the FREE advice and tools he gave in this podcast in such a gentle way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://groundedcounseling.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/socialworker_rebecca/

Image Credits
Erin Hennessey