The Freedom Therapist

This week’s episode is one I recorded on the fly, after a real conversation reminded me of just how heavy things have felt for so many therapists right now.

Between constant NDIS changes, shifting ballparks, and the relentless pressure of report writing, it’s no wonder so many of us are feeling tired, questioning ourselves, and teetering on the edge of burnout.

In this episode, I speak honestly about:

• Why it’s natural to feel drained, flat, or second-guessing yourself in a system that keeps moving the goalposts.
• How perfectionism sneaks in when change feels out of our control — and what to do with that urge to over-carry.
• The small, 5% shifts that actually help — grounding rituals, noticing impact, and giving yourself permission not to fix the whole system.
• Why the spark for your work isn’t gone, even if it feels dim right now.
• The resilience of our therapy community, and why I’m so proud of us.

If you’ve been feeling heavy, flat, or on the verge of burnout, I want this episode to remind you: you’re not alone, you’re not broken, and the spark for your work will return.

I’d love to hear what landed for you — come find me over on Instagram @miapoko and share your reflections.

And if this episode supported you, leaving a review truly helps more therapists find this space — and reminds others that they’re not alone in navigating the wildness of this work.

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

So many therapists, health professionals & allied heath practitioners tell me the same story: “I mapped out my whole week, and by Wednesday it was chaos again.”

If you’ve ever felt like your calendar just doesn’t stick — no matter how motivated you are — this episode is for you.

We’ll explore why traditional productivity hacks and rigid schedules often fail in therapy businesses, and what’s really underneath the struggle to stay consistent. I’ll share practical ways to approach time management as a therapist, so your calendar reflects your actual capacity (not just your endless to-do list).

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• Why therapists often overplan or avoid planning altogether
• The deeper role of your nervous system in building a sustainable schedule
• How to create white space in your week without guilt
• A simple reframe for planning from capacity, not pressure

This isn’t about forcing yourself into another system. It’s about building a business that can hold you — even on the messy weeks.

→ Come say hi or share what landed: @miapoko

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

If content keeps slipping off your to-do list — it’s probably not just about time or “sticking to a plan.”

In this episode, I’m unpacking why showing up online as a therapist can feel so uncomfortable (and no, it’s not just the algorithm), and how to shift your mindset so creating content feels more like building connection and less like performing.

We’ll talk about what’s really behind that hesitation to post, and how sharing what actually matters to you can expand your reach, deepen trust, and make your marketing feel more human.

If you’ve been overthinking your posts, avoiding the camera, or wondering how to be visible without burning out — this one’s for you.

→ Come say hi or share what landed: @miapoko

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

In this episode, we’re talking about the constant tug-of-war therapists feel between working in the business (client sessions, admin, the to-do list) and working on the business (planning, strategy, sustainable growth). If you’ve ever felt guilty for stepping back from client work to focus on the bigger picture — or overwhelmed by the idea of making time for CEO time when you’re already drowning — this episode is for you.

We’re unpacking why this isn’t a motivation problem, and what to do instead — including three strategies I use with my clients (and in my own business) to help make space for real growth without burning out.

Keywords: private practice therapist, therapy business strategy, therapist burnout, NDIS business support, scaling your therapy business, time management for therapists, working on your business

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

Is Private Practice Still Worth It? Why I’m Choosing to Stay

For the therapist on the edge of burnout, change, or walking away — a reminder of what’s still possible

There’s Still So Much Goodness in Private Practice

Yes, it’s hard. Yes, things are shifting. But this space is still full of possibility.

If you’ve felt the weight of all the recent changes

If you’ve caught yourself thinking, “Is it even worth it anymore?”

This episode is for you.

Today, I’m speaking directly to the therapist who’s been holding on by a thread.

The one wondering if it’s time to leave.

The one who still loves the work, but doesn’t know if there’s room for her in this new version of the system.

I get it.

You’re not imagining the heaviness in the private practice space right now — especially with the NDIS changes and the uncertainty rippling through our industry.

But I want to offer you something else, too:

A moment to come back to what’s still good.

Because despite it all…

Despite the exhaustion, the confusion, the grief…

This space still holds so much possibility.

And you get to shape it.

Inside this episode, I share:

• The real fears I’ve had lately (and why I’m not having them now)
• Why I still believe in private practice, even when it’s hard
• A few of the moments that reminded me why I do this work
• Three reflective prompts to help you reconnect with what matters
• Permission to change how you practice — without throwing it all away

This one’s for the therapist who’s not ready to give up.

The one who knows there has to be another way — but just needed someone to say it out loud first.

You’re not alone. And you’re not wrong for still wanting to believe in this work.

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

You love this work. You care deeply. You hold the emotional weight of your clients, your team, and your community and yet, you’re still afraid to talk about making really great money.

In today’s episode, we’re saying the thing out loud: being broke isn’t ethical — it’s unsustainable. I’m unpacking the toxic stories therapists have inherited around accessibility, pricing, and guilt... and what it actually takes to build a practice that works for you, not just for everyone else.

This isn’t about getting rich quick. It’s about staying in the work you love for the long haul — without burning out.

We’re talking:

• The belief that “good therapists shouldn’t care about money”
• What happens when you actually start earning well
• Why being underpaid isn’t ethical — it’s exhausting
• The difference between accessible and unsustainable
• How money helps you lead better, not worse

And three powerful questions to sit with if money makes you squirm to help create more sustainability in your practice right now.

If you’ve ever felt like making money meant selling out… or if you’re quietly exhausted from building a business that only functions when you over-function — this episode is for you.

Join The Freedom Therapist Club here: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

In this warm, honest, and emotionally rich episode, Mia sits down with Darwin-based occupational therapist and founder of Palm Tree OT, Emma Podsiadly to unpack the deeply personal story behind her heart-led private practice.

Emma is a paediatric OT, mum to two gorgeous young children, and small business owner. She is always optimistic, and the kind of friend (and therapist!) who will cheer you on and go to in to bat for you!

With a background in education and a strong respect for the power of relationships, Emma brings a collaborative and unapologetically passionate approach to supporting children, their families and teachers.

Emma shares her winding path to OT from her early years studies to her to her incredible OT prac in Bali to her move to Darwin that shaped her creativity and grit. We hear how she built a values-aligned business while raising two children under three, and how a gut feeling (and a nudge from her husband) eventually became a thriving practice — one rooted in community, sustainability, and joy.

Together, Mia and Emma explore:

• The early days of launching Palm Tree OT with two young children
• Why private practice felt intimidating — and what shifted that
• The moment Emma realised she could do this differently (and better)
• How she landed 17 client calls in one day — and still kept her boundaries
• What it actually looks like to run a practice around her kids', her family’s and HER needs
• The moment she found herself dancing in the kitchen and what that taught her about impact
• What therapists don’t always talk about (and should): judgment, identity shifts, and choosing your lane

This episode is a love letter to slow growth, to building your business your way, and to the deep power of showing up as yourself — even (especially) when it’s scary.

If you’ve ever wondered whether you’re ready to start something — or whether you’re allowed to build a business that feels genuinely good — this one is for you.

This is truly SUCH a special and inspiring episode for all therapists and allied health practitioners at all stages of the journey xx

You can find Emma at Palm Tree OT here: https://www.instagram.com/palmtreeot/

You can find details for The Freedom Therapist Club here: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

You finally start creating a business that feels good in your body.

A group program that works.

A bit more breathing space in your calendar.

Profit that doesn’t rely on you being constantly available.

And then the voice creeps in:

Am I abandoning the work?

Am I betraying my peers who are still in the trenches?

Is it okay to want more — when so many are just barely getting by?

In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on a question so many of us carry quietly:

Does building a business that gives me more time, more space, more freedom... mean I’m betraying the therapy industry?

We talk about:

• The hidden grief behind growing your practice in a crumbling system
• Why “depletion” has been confused with “dedication” — and what that’s really costing us
• What came up in our biggest-ever masterclass (300+ therapists!) and why so many resonated with this exact guilt
• My own experience launching Empowered Emotions, and the fear I had of making money without 1:1 therapy
• What therapists need now — not just to survive, but to stay

This one’s for the therapist who still loves the work… but knows something has to shift.

Reflection prompts inside the episode:

• Where have you confused depletion with dedication?
• Where are you still proving you care by staying at overcapacity?
• What version of your business would let you stay in this work longer?

Because wanting more isn’t betrayal.

It’s how you stay.

Resources & Links:

→ Replay the free masterclass: The Scalable Therapist Offer™

→ Join The Freedom Therapist Club: Enrolments are now open for the rest of 2025. This is where we rebuild your practice in a way that holds you too. Learn more + join we are currently 80% FULL for 2025

→ Come say hi or share what landed: @miapoko

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

You think you’re just being generous.

You think you’re just making your service more accessible.

But what if staying affordable is quietly costing you far more than you realise?

In this episode, I take you behind the scenes of a real pricing conversation I had with a therapist inside The Freedom Therapist Club — one that started with “I’m not sure what to charge for this…”... and ended somewhere much deeper.

We talk about:

• what actually happens when you undercharge (even with the best of intentions)
• how it impacts your nervous system, your team AND the longevity of your practice
• and what starts to shift when you give yourself permission to build something sustainable - while you’re still deeply IN it.

This one’s not really about pricing.

It’s about capacity.

And the quiet weight so many therapists carry trying to make it work inside a model that we know needs to change.

If you’ve been feeling the pressure — this is for you.

🧡 Mia

Resources & Links:

The Scalable Therapist Offer™: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/scale

It’s a free, live workshop happening on Friday June 20th at 10am AWST, where I’ll show you:

• exactly how I built my first sold-out scalable offer while running a full remote caseload
• the 5-step process I now teach inside The Freedom Therapist Club
• how to finally build the offer that’s been quietly asking for your attention

Join LIVE and get the Scalable Offer Template I use with clients to turn “I’ve got this idea” into “this is actually happening.”

Because the longer you wait for “space”… the more that idea stays stuck.

This hour will help you start.

Instagram: @miapoko

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

You started your business for more space, more autonomy, more alignment.

But what happens when you’ve built the thing… and it still doesn’t feel like yours?

In this episode of The Freedom Therapist Podcast, I speak to the quiet ache so many therapists carry: the over-functioning, the people-pleasing, the invisible labour that follows us from traditional systems straight into private practice.

We unpack why your business can look “successful” on the outside — and still leave you feeling tired, stretched, and strangely disconnected.

Because for many of us?

The problem isn’t that we’re not doing enough.

It’s that we’re still measuring our worth through output, presence, and being the one who always shows up.

Even when it costs us.

Inside this episode, I explore:

✨ Why the urgency we thought we were escaping often follows us

✨ How your business might be quietly replicating the pressure you left behind

✨ The difference between caring deeply and carrying everything

✨ A simple 3-question tool I use when I feel myself spiralling into over-responsibility

✨ How to know when you're building from survival instead of alignment

✨ What it looks like to re-define success in a way that honours your nervous system, your values, and your life

This episode is for the therapist who feels like they’ve outgrown the way they’ve been working — and wants to do things differently.

Not by burning it all down, but by building with more truth, capacity, and care.

🌱 Resources & Links:

Join the waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club — a space for therapists who are ready to build businesses that support them, too: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

Connect with me on Instagram: @miapoko

🎧 Tune in now — and let this episode be your permission slip to stop doing more, and start building from who you really are.

Connect with Mia:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/

Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit

Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club