THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 42 / NUMBER 3 SUMMER 2019
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
AMHCA members lobby Capitol Hill leaders / 6
AMHCA ' s new advanced professional certification program / 8
Trans * -form your practice / 15
feature article
How to tell Alzheimer ’ s from dementia , grief , depression
— and normal aging / 21
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 40 / NUMBER 3 AUGUST 2017
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
Pressing AMHCA ’ s Medicare agenda on Capitol Hill / 7
Helping clients be free of negative Core Beliefs / 14
Counseling clients in law enforcement / 18
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 44 / NUMBER 4 FALL 2021
• Nutrition and how it affects mental health / 2
• New AMHCA standard on Affectional Identity / 6
• How to help clients manage their cravings / 14
• Couples counseling with Arab Americans / 19
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
Perhaps you ’ ve been working for an agency and fear that you ’ ll soon start to lose your therapy skills . Perhaps you work as a salaried therapist in a large group practice and wonder if your income could improve . Or maybe you are recently licensed and have always dreamed of opening your own office .
Whatever the reason , you ’ ve been yearning to take the leap into practice … but something is holding you back .
The uneasiness you ’ re experiencing might be fear of the unknown , fear of failure , fear of losing job security , or even a vague sense that you just don ’ t have “ the right stuff ” to succeed as an independent mental health practitioner .
If you fear that you would just be impersonating a competent business owner , you ’ re not alone . Nearly every private practitioner I ’ ve interviewed experienced the well-named “ imposter syndrome ” when starting out . It ’ s clear that their negative intuitions were unfounded ; they all were successful .
But you could have rational reasons for delaying your plans . Before you greet that first client in your waiting room , you ’ ll have a wide variety of tasks to accomplish . You may wince as you consider all the puzzle pieces not yet in place .
A suggestion : Even though you may not be ready today , why not whittle down the list of prerequisites , breaking the overwhelming task into bite-sized chunks ? You might admonish a client paralyzed by a formidable task to do this — why not take your own advice ?
Some of these tasks can be completed in just a few minutes . Accomplishing them may encourage you to go toward your dream .
Make a Name for Yourself
Time Commitment : 5 minutes Cost : free
Counseling Tips Want to Start a Private Practice ? Go for It !
Bill Whitehead , PhD , is coauthor of the book The Psychotherapist Success Guide . As a psychologist , he created both individual and group psychotherapy practices , maintaining them for 30 years . He is currently the CEO of TherapyAppointment , a practicemanagement system and EMR that has assisted more than 30,000 therapists toward professional success .
Your new practice will need a business name in order to complete some of the steps below . Perhaps you ’ ll just want to use your name ( e . g ., “ Jane Smith , LPC ”), but perhaps you ’ ll want to choose a more descriptive name ( e . g ., “ New Beginnings Psychotherapy ”). A creative name is a good idea if you think you may want other therapists to join you some day .
Before you decide on a name , you must ensure that the name is not already in local use . Most states let you check this online via the office of the secretary of state .
Don ’ t Be Yourself
Time Commitment : 20 minutes Cost : free
We ’ ve all heard the admonition “ just be yourself .” This is an occasion when you shouldn ’ t !
Myriad reasons exist for not accepting client or insurance payments under your own Social Security number .
Click here to acquire an EIN ( a new tax ID from the federal government ) for your business online . Though the “ E ” in “ EIN ” stands for “ Employer ,” you need this new number whether or not you ever intend to employ others .
Find a Place to Sit Down
Time Commitment : several days Cost : costs vary
If you are confident that you have a sufficient , sustainable referral stream ( see “ Become a Superstar ” and “ Get Reduced to a Number ” sections below ), you may want to contact a realtor to help you lease an office . This is a complicated process ; download my book ( free ) for more information on office selection and decoration . If you are just starting out , you may want to consider less expensive alternatives :
1 . Find a therapist willing to sublease their existing office to you after hours . This is a common practice . To find willing local therapists , try Googling “ therapy office sublease near me .”
2 . Start your business as an onlineonly practice . All you ’ ll need is a quiet room in your house , a stable internet connection , a good compu- ter , nice lighting , and a HIPAA-compliant video telehealth service . The telehealth service is often bundled within your practice management system — don ’ t buy it separately .
Make Friends With Practice- Management Software
Time Commitment : 2 hours Cost : free to start
A good practice-management system will take care of a vast array of tasks that are drudgery , such as obtaining new client information , online scheduling , sending appointment reminders , charting , credit-card processing , accounting , filing insurance claims , and much more . It ’ s better to learn the system first and establish your practice around it , rather than trying to force the system to fit routines established ad-hoc . I won ’ t be coy about which system I recommend since I created this one .
continued on page 9
8 The Advocate Magazine 2025 , Issue # 1 American Mental Health Counselors Association ( AMHCA ) www . amhca . org
MAGAZINE
The three skills we ' ll need in the next crisis / 9
How telehealth has changed how we feel about our work / 15
Strategies to prevent burnout and maintain well-being / 20
2024 VOL 47 / NO 1 WWW . AMHCA . ORG THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 45 / NUMBER 3 2022
Also in this issue : MILITARY MENTAL HEALTH :
page 11
• How to spot military men who may be victims of domestic violence / 15
• Treating veterans with PTSD using Cognitive Processing Therapy / 20
PLUS : Emotional Support Animals ( ESA )— When not to write a letter of support / 8
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE
M A G A Z I N E
WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 46 / NUMBER 3 2023
SPECIAL FOCUS :
PAGES 2 , and 8 – 23
Trans-affirming care , from an agency perspective / 2
How binary-gender socialization affects gender-diverse folx / 8
When a client asks for a letter of support for medical interventions / 12
Working with trans youths and their families / 16
The positives and negatives of masculinity / 20
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 45 / NUMBER 2 2022
Research findings and news / 13 Neuroscience-informed counseling / 14 Addiction approaches / 20
PLUS : The ethics of guardianship evaluations / 9
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE
M A G A Z I N E WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 40 / NUMBER 4 NOVEMBER 2017
page 8
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
• How to generate what your brain and body need to handle stress / 13
• Applying feminist theory to empower aging / 16
• Business practices affect client relationships / 20
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW WWW . . AMHCA . ORG . ORG VOLUME 43 42 43 / / NUMBER 13 4 WINTER SUMMER FALL 2020 2019
but the anger and anxiety aren ' t — how can you help clients hang up the gloves ? page 12
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE :
Working with DACA Recipients and immigrants / 10
Why don ' t they come back to counseling ? Barriers faced by clients who are Black , Indigenous , and people of color
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW . AMHCA . ORG VOLUME 46 / NUMBER 1 2023
SPECIAL FOCUS :
The aftermath of suicide loss / 11
Trauma-informed support for teens and children / 15
SFBT with Eastern Orthodox Arabs / 20
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE : Member Reflections : COVID & Me / 2 LCMHCs win Medicare status / 6 AMHCA Certifications / 7
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
THE M A G A Z I N E
WWW WWW . . AMHCA . ORG . ORG VOLUME 43 42 / NUMBER 13 SUMMER WINTER 2020 2019
THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION
/ 16
Strategies for supervising counselors who are impaired / 19
If helping clients change their lives makes your career worthwhile , chances are you ’ re good at it . But even if you excel at many aspects of your work , are there some client issues you find persistently challenging ?
Guest Column :
Thanks — and Goodbye
Kathleen McCarthy , editor of The Advocate Magazine , is leaving the magazine after more than 20 years . She has edited books and workbooks on mental health , and co-created an online course for foster parents .
My hope over the past two decades of working on The Advocate Magazine is that each issue might contain at least one article that gives you a practical approach or tip from a fellow counselor that enables you to be more effective in your work with clients .
Get a Peer ’ s Help on a Difficult Therapy Issue
Most articles are written by your AMHCA member colleagues . Have they made any of the following challenges easier for you ?
• Working with a teen who doesn ’ t want to be in counseling ? See :
Summer 2019 ; Vol . 42 , # 3 , pages 17 – 20
“ Moving Beyond the Stuckness : Teens , Trauma , and Substance Use Disorders ”
• Writing a letter for a client that would bolster their claim for an emotional support animal ( ESA )? See : Updated article ( Issue # 3 , 2022 ) “ Clinical Update ,” pages 8 – 10 ¨ Original article of the ESA article ( Fall 2018 ) at bit . ly / 3Mqy8BX
• Wrestling with the power differential in the clinical relationship ? See :
August 2017 ; Vol . 40 , # 3 , pages 10 – 12
“ What Do Our Clients Say About Us ? Examining Our Power as Clinicians ”
• Using muscle relaxation with clients to reduce their anxiety and chronic pain ? See :
Fall 2021 , Vol . 44 , # 4 , pages 10 – 13
“ How to use Progressive Muscle Relaxation ( PMR ) with clients to reduce anxiety , stress , and chronic pain ”
• IN THIS ISSUE : Putting off opening a private practice ? See :
Issue # 1 , 2025 , Vol . 48 , # 1 , pages 8 – 9
“ Want to Start a Private Practice ? Go for it !”
help ‘ stuck ’ teens break free
THEA
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THEA
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Wrestling With the Power Differential in the Clinical Relationship
PAGE 10
ATHEA DVOCATE
PROGRESSIVE MUSCLE RELAXATION CAN HELP RELIEVE ANXIETY , STRESS , AND CHRONIC PAIN page 10
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
• Understanding trauma ? See :
Nov .. 2017 ; Vol . 40 , # 4 , pages 8 – 11
2 The Advocate Magazine 2025 , Issue # 1 American Mental Health Counselors Association ( AMHCA ) www . amhca . org
“ Understand the neurobiology of trauma to help clients heal permanently ”
• Supervising impaired counselors ? See :
Fall 2020 ; Vol . 43 , # 4 , pages 19 – 23
“ Our Role as Gatekeepers : Supervising Counselors Experiencing Impairment ”
Special Sections That Cover Topics In-Depth
I ’ m proud of some of the special sections we ’ ve done over the years . Did you see the ones on :
C
THE
ADVOCATE
How to Keep Yourself — and Your Practice — Thriving
How to Keep Yourself and Your Practice Thriving ( Issue # 1 , 2024 )
ATHEA DVOCATE
DSM-5-TR What ' s new , what ' s changed
Military Mental Health ( Issue # 3 , 2022 )
A DVOCATE
Gender-Affirming Care
Gender-Affirming Care ( Issue # 3 , 2023 )
ATHEA DVOCATE
SPECIAL FOCUS
working with children & adolescents :
Working With Children & Adolescents ( Issue # 2 , 2022 )
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Because I ’ m in cancer treatment ( again ), I ’ m leaving my role as editor of the magazine , knowing I ’ ll miss it greatly . I ’ m proud to have had a hand in shaping the magazine of the only national organization working exclusively for clinical mental health counselors . The work has been consistently meaningful and satisfying .
Thank you to AMHCA for the trust it has placed in me for more than 20 years ; thank you to the magazine ’ s consulting editors and board liaisons , Dr . Aaron Norton and Angele Moss , who expertly evaluate the magazine ’ s content each issue ; thank you to Whitney Meyerhoeffer , esteemed editor in chief ; thank you to AMHCA ’ s wonderful members who have responded so enthusiastically to requests to write an article that will benefit their colleagues ; and thank you to The Advocate Magazine readers . It ’ s been such a pleasure .
Understand the neurobiology of trauma to help clients heal permanently
A THEA DVOCATE
ATHEA DVOCATE
GRIEF Moving through grief with resiliency / 5
THE FIGHT ' S OVER
Grief ( Issue # 1 , 2023 )
THEA DVOCATE
D I V E R S I T Y &
JUSTICE
Diversity & Justice ( Summer 2020 )