We were lucky to catch up with Samira Soroory recently and have shared our conversation below.
Samira, 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?
I began working in the field of psychology before my graduate program started in 2012. Since 2012, I worked and trained under incredible mentors in the world of Anxiety and OCD. In 2019, I had the opportunity to start my very own private practice. It was intimidating, but a dream nonetheless. I was excited to get started into the clinical work my way. It felt liberating to be my own boss and have my own plan for how my business works.
When I rented my office there was a big sign at the front door that said, “SoroWellness Counseling Center”. Looking at this – my business felt cemented and celebrated. I had several clients to start and it started to build on its own over time. Every evening I would lock the door, look at the sign, and feel accomplished. It was a moment I always dreamed of: being a business owner and making a difference.
After few months, the COVID-19 pandemic began. I had to re-evaluate everything. Will I still feel like a business owner if I am only online? Without an office? Of course I will, but it was challenging to accept in the beginning. I had to be ok with the changes. I had to adapt.
One of the biggest lessons I learned was adapting to change. Feeling like a business owner/being independent doesn’t need to be in a physical form (i.e. having an office). It is more of a confidence you can take with you anywhere you go. Also, at this point more and more people were experiencing hardships during COVID-19. It gave me a chance to help others who would have never seeked therapy otherwise.
Looking back, I would have liked to be more flexible with change. It is challenging to do so, but less resistance on my end could have gotten me more ahead in my business. With COVID-19, it was a worldwide resistance to change. Everything was different. Being more flexible would create less anxiety.
For anyone considering starting their own practice my advice is to do makes you feel confident. This could be networking, being creative on social media, and trying new ways to get your name out there. Don’t feel limited by the traditional way of doing things. I am very happy I did this with my social media presence. During COVID-19 I became flexible by making my own videos on instagram and continuing writing on my blog.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My name is Samira Soroory and I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. I have my own private practice and I specialize in Anxiety and OCD. I received my BA in Sociology at UCLA and my MA in Clinical Psychology at Antioch University. When I was at UCLA I started my blog, SoroWellness.com. My blog was designed to help others feel more confident with themselves.
My friend’s mother was a psychologist and she was able to guide me into the field. She gave me my start by giving me an internship at her private practice. From then on I went to train with the top clinicians in the field of Anxiety and OCD.
I always ran my practice in a non-traditional way. I love being creative. I started making YouTube videos, Instagram Reels, and TikTok videos to educate others on self-esteem, anxiety, and OCD. In my therapy sessions I like to give tools to clients so they have things to work on between sessions. This gives them something practical to work on and gives faster results.
The brand SoroWellness has always been about being happy with who you are. It’s about feeling confident in yourself and not letting society tell you otherwise. There are so many influences out there that makes us feel less than and we do not need too. SoroWellness is a place that helps you boost your confidence through therapy, articles, and practical tools.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
In my blog, SoroWellness.com I share a lot about my journey of resilience. One of the biggest challenges I had to overcome was the sudden passing of my mother in 2012. Me and my mom were very close, like best friends.
My mom passed away right before my graduate program started. Naturally, I deferred and started when I felt ready. Over the years (and now) I am still working on going through the motions of grief. Some days are easy, others are hard. What helped me get through the earlier hard times was my family, friends, and a great therapist. I did my best to work on myself and process my feelings during this time. My mom always told me, “The only way out is through”.
A few months ago I became a mom for the first time. It is an amazing, rewarding privilege. But quite difficult without my mom being around. It’s interesting how when we become parents we start to see everything differently.
I try to remember all the lessons my mom taught me and apply them to being a mom now. I still miss her so much and think about her everyday. I am grateful that I have my family, friends, and tools I learned in therapy to help me get through each day.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Having a social media presence and media training helped me build my reputation in the world of Anxiety and OCD. Growing up, I have always loved the film and entertainment industry. When I was a student at UCLA, my side job was being a reporter on the red carpet. I went to movie premieres for Harry Potter, Ratatouille, Zodiac and many more. It was an awesome time and quite the experience! It helped me come out of my shell and practice asking questions and getting my name out there.
I took all of this media training and applied it to my private practice. It helped me build my reputation and understand what people want to see. When I got my therapist license, I applied all the skills I had from my media training and my clinician training and combined them. I incorporated them into SoroWellness.com and my social media presence.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.sorowellness.com
- Instagram: @SoroWellness
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sorowellness
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samirasoro/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sorowellness/about
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/sorowellness-counseling-center-irvine-3
Image Credits
SoroWellness