The Modern Therapist's Survival Guide with Curt Widhalm and Katie Vernoy

Reporting Back from the Behavioral Health Tech 2024 Conference Curt and Katie chat about Katie’s attendance at the 2024 Behavioral Health Teach conference. Katie reported back on investment trends, how Value Based Care is being understood and implemented, and how therapists can navigate these tech disruptors and evolving business models.   Transcripts for this episode will be available at mtsgpodc...

Working for 988: Insider Perspectives Curt and Katie received feedback on our recent one year follow-up episode on the rollout of 988. We received responses from a person who was working within the 988 system as well as someone who started going through the training for the text crisis hotline. We were able to put more depth into our understanding of how this system works. We explored training, su...

How Do Therapists Get Paid? Curt and Katie chat about how community mental health as well as insurance, hybrid, or private pay practices get money and pay their workers. We emphasize the importance of recognizing the financial realities of the mental health profession and how advocacy can drive change in the field. We also encourage therapists to understand the systems we work in and engage in con...

How to Scale Your Therapy Practice to 7 Figures So You Can Sell It: An interview with Nicole McCance Curt and Katie interview Nicole McCance about her journey to selling her 7-figure group therapy practice. We look at common challenges therapists face in this process as well as ideas and methods Nicole teaches to help others scale their practice more easily. Nicole shares systems, hiring, and lead...

Going No Contact, Relationship Recovery, and the NY Times: An interview with Patrick Teahan, LICSW Curt and Katie interview Patrick Teahan, LICSW after he was featured in an article on going no contact in the New York Times. We explored his experience of his work being sensationalized and the fallout from that article (and the string of duplicates). We also dug into how he actually works. We talke...

How Do Therapists Manage Intense Caseloads? Curt and Katie chat about how to manage clients with high needs. We look at risk factors as well as how therapists can take care of themselves while working with challenging caseloads. We also talk about clinical strategies and effective risk assessments and safety planning as important elements for effective practice. Transcripts for this episode will b...

Bipolar Disorder - How Can Therapists Support Clients and Their Families?: An interview with Dr. David J. Miklowitz, PhD Curt and Katie interview Dr. David Miklowitz about his work with people with Bipolar Disorder and their families. We look at what therapists can often get wrong when working with patients presenting with this disorder. We explore differential diagnosis, treatment options, lifest...

Is Your Informed Consent Based on Magical Thinking? Curt and Katie chat about the strange, manipulative, or outright illegal and unethical policies that therapists put into their informed consent. We talk through court, payment, and jurisdictional policies (among others), exploring why these policies are so bad. We also give some advice on what to do instead.  Transcripts for this episode will be...

Is Artificial Intelligence Bringing Bias into Mental Health Treatment? Curt and Katie chat about the responsibility therapists hold when they use AI applications for their therapy practices. We explore where bias can show up and how AI compares to therapists in acting on biased information. This is a continuing education podcourse. Transcripts for this episode will be available at mtsgpodcast.com!...

Why Are So Many Adults Getting Diagnosed with ADHD and Autism?: An interview with Dr. Monica Blied Curt and Katie interview Dr. Monica Blied about adults getting diagnosed later in life with Autism and/or ADHD. We look at why people (especially individual assigned female at birth) are getting diagnoses later in life. We also explore skills, strategies, and accommodations to support neurodivergent...

AI Therapy is Already Here: An interview with Dr. Ben Caldwell Curt and Katie interview Dr. Ben Caldwell about the state of Artificial Intelligence in therapy. We look at the “AI Therapists” that are already working as well as how they are being regulated (or not). We talk about how AI therapy chatbots are being received and likely next steps in innovation. We also explore what “human therapists”...

Growing Antisemitism in the Therapy Profession: An interview with Halina Brooke, LPC As part of a double episode release, Curt and Katie interview Halina Brooke, LPC, founder of the Jewish Therapist Collective, about experiences of antisemitism in our profession. We explore the foundations of antisemitism throughout the development and innovation in psychotherapy. We also talk about lived experien...

Exploring the Danger, Trauma, and Grief for a Palestinian Therapist in the United States: An anonymous interview As part of a double episode release, Curt and Katie share an anonymous interview with a Palestinian American therapist about their experience in our profession and in the United States both historically and since the attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023. We explore what therapists need...

Navigating Religious Trauma, Spiritual Abuse, and Lies About God: An interview with Dr. Jamie Marich Curt and Katie interview Dr. Jamie Marich about her new book coming out in October 2024, You Lied to Me About God. We explore the impacts of religious abuse, Jamie’s personal story of spiritual trauma, and what therapists can miss when working with clients on these topics. We also dig into the idea...

Do Therapists Lie to Their Clients? Curt and Katie chat about whether therapists are dishonest and whether they should be. We received a request from a listener to talk about the idea that therapists lie to their clients. We look at what types of lies are common, whether lying is expected or acceptable, what to do instead, and how to decide whether you will lie or not in session. Transcripts for t...

Welcome to Therapist Grad School! Curt and Katie chat about what the career is like, what is important to know starting out in grad school. We look at what prospective therapists need to know as they enter school, including hard truths and tips for social support. We also talk about what changes are needed in the profession and how students and new therapists can navigate these challenges. We prov...

Are Therapist Conferences Elitist? An interview with Linda Thai, LMSW Curt and Katie interview Linda Thai on her experiences as a conference attendee, keynote speaker, and educator. We discussed the need for more accessible, community-centric, and culturally humble education as well as how to more effectively share knowledge. The limitations of traditional educational models (which Linda calls the...

How Much is Too Much? Thoughts on therapists being too branded, niched, and political Curt and Katie chat about the delicate balance between authenticity and influence in therapy, with a focus on avoiding bias and discrimination while still being real people. We also navigate the challenges of political discussions in therapy, emphasizing the need to balance political awareness with client needs a...

How Can Therapists Help Politically Divided Families? : An interview with Angela Caldwell, LMFT Curt and Katie interview Angela Caldwell, LMFT about family therapy for politically divided families. We explore what therapists get wrong when working with these families as well as what works better. Angela talks us through the goals for family therapy, how to move families from trying to convince eac...

Beyond "Being a Therapist is Hard Work": Curt and Katie respond to listener feedback Curt and Katie received feedback on a recent episode, Don’t Let Tik Tok Fool You: Being a therapist is hard work, an interview with Anita Avedian and Sandra Kushnir. We talk through the feedback that the perspective was too one-sided (primarily from the employer angle) and that it was too much in support of the st...

What is Working Now in Online Marketing: An interview with Katie Read Curt and Katie interview Katie Read on how the economy has shifted and what works for marketing has shifted. We look at how things have shifted since the pandemic and what therapists can think about now for their therapy and online businesses. Katie gives us simple strategies and clear insights on what isn’t working anymore and...

What to do when supervision goes bad? A guide to supervision ruptures and repair Curt and Katie chat about what to do when there is a loss of trust in supervision. We explore what has already been researched (and the limitations there). We also look at what can make ruptures more likely, different types of ruptures, and how supervisors can mitigate the risk of rupture and then repair when ruptures...

Should We Stop Badmouthing Evidence Based Practice? An interview with Jessica Tappana, LCSW Curt and Katie interview Jessica Tappana, LCSW about evidence-based practices (EBPs). We talk about what EBPs actually are and how to implement them in clinically sound and ethical ways. We look at what therapists usually get wrong about EBPs and what they can do to improve their practice. Transcripts for t...

Two Years In: Is 988 Actually Helping People Facing Mental Health Crises? Curt and Katie check back with the now two-year-old program and identify what’s working and what’s not with the crisis hotline. There is data that it is 98% but there are also concerns that have been raised. We look at reports of data sharing without transparency, increases in police involvement and involuntary hospitalizati...

Don’t Let TikTok Fool You – Being a Therapist is Hard Work: An interview with Sandra Kushnir, LMFT and Anita Avedian, LMFT Curt and Katie interview Sandra Kushner and Anita Avedian about how the therapy business works now. We talk about how the profession and those who are entering it has changed over the years. We look at what new therapists can expect when they join a group practice, pushing bac...