The Therapist HQ

Alicia Murray sits down with Irene Koutsidis-Martelli, an LCSW and trauma-informed therapist practicing in New York and South Carolina, to talk about what happens after the marketing works. The conversation focuses on how social media can help clients feel seen before they ever enter the room, and how therapists can use that connection without losing curiosity, boundaries, or clinical depth.We discuss how Irene uses Instagram to attract aligned clients, why self-diagnosis content can open useful clinical doors, and how relational therapy can make room for humor, identity, and real human connection.

Connect with Irene:

• Instagram
• Irene’s Website

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

Resources & Links:

• 1 Free month of Jane - use code THERAPISTHQ1MO for your first month free of my practice management software
• Paubox for your HIPAA secure email - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup
• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Therapists can diversify their income in ways that fit their values, strengths, and capacity. Alicia and Gabrielle discuss what it takes to build revenue beyond one-to-one clinical work, including email marketing, lead magnets, retreats, courses, consulting, and speaking.

Gabrielle Giuliano Vellani shares lessons from building multiple income streams while running a practice—and why it helps to start with what people already ask you for, rather than building something entirely new.

• Why email can be a particularly warm audience—and why Gabrielle makes it a priority.
• The importance of repeated audience touch points before someone decides to buy.
• Three ways Gabrielle has grown her email list: freebies, Facebook groups, and virtual summits or trainings.
• How community questions can reveal gaps and potential new offers.
• Turning clinical expertise into paid trainings, consulting, coaching, and other opportunities.
• Why selling can be a way of sharing how you help—and how lower-priced offers can build trust.
• Setting prices and choosing offers that align with your values and capacity.
• Why a course isn’t necessarily the right next step for every therapist.
• Using relationship-building, pitching, and networking to find new opportunities.
• How to think about profitability, time freedom, and when to pivot away from work that no longer fits.

Connect with Gabrielle:

• Instagram
• Gabrielle’s Website
• Medicare Consulting for Therapists
• Free Guide to Income Streams

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

Resources & Links:

• 1 Free month of Jane - use code THERAPISTHQ1MO for your first month free of my practice management software
• Paubox for your HIPAA secure email - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup
• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Alicia Murray talks with licensed mental health counselor and private practice founder Kaela Ason about the pressure high achieving women place on themselves, especially in business ownership and therapy work. They explore how worth gets tied to productivity, why boundaries matter, and how curiosity can replace shame when it comes to delegation, rest, and decision-making.

In this episode, Kaela shares what she has learned from building her solo practice, working with high achieving women of color, and managing her own perfectionistic tendencies while running a business.

Connect with Kaela:

• Instagram
• Website
• Free Relationship Values Guide

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

Resources & Links:

• Paubox for your HIPAA secure email - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup
• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Alicia Murray talks with Donnie Newman, a New York based therapist specializing in body image, self-esteem, and disordered eating, about what it really looks like to market a private practice on social media. Donnie shares how her own growth, discomfort, and confidence shifts have shaped her content, plus the boundaries she uses to stay ethical and protected online. This conversation is especially useful for therapists who want to show up more consistently without losing themselves to comparison, comments, or the pressure to go viral.

Connect with Donnie:

• Instagram
• Website
• Donnie’s Algorithm Reset Guide

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

Resources and Links:

• Paubox for your HIPAA secure email - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup
• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Alicia Murray talks with Liana Ross, LMHC, a licensed mental health counselor, KSEC certified addiction specialist, and clinical director of Gooding Wellness Group, about navigating pregnancy, postpartum, and maternity leave while running a private practice. Liana shares what it looked like to plan leave, protect her schedule, rebuild her caseload, and manage the emotional reality of returning to work as a parent. They also cover the mental load of childcare disruptions, the importance of intentional boundaries, and why having a practice that fits your life can make return-to-work feel more sustainable.

Connect with Liana:

• Instagram
• Website

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram
• Facebook

• Website

Resources & Links:

• Paubox for your HIPAA secure email - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year

• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup

• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Alicia talks with Mel Emlyn, a Calgary-based manual osteopath, certified nutritional practitioner, 500-hour registered yoga teacher, and wellness content creator, about what it really takes to use social media as a healthcare practitioner. They dig into the emotional side of showing up online, the business case for smaller engaged accounts, and how to create content that builds trust without letting the internet run your life.

• They discuss how Instagram has changed over time, and why creators should not force themselves into one format just because the algorithm is pushing it.
• Alicia and Mel both talk about the value of experimenting with content types, including carousels, talking-head videos, b-roll, stories, and short series.
• They unpack how creators can separate their self-worth from performance metrics, especially when a post flops or doesn’t get the reach they hoped for.
• Mel explains why she sees social media as a business tool and a safeguard, not just a marketing vanity project.
• They discuss how smaller, niche, highly engaged accounts can still convert well for practices, retreats, partnerships, and sponsorships.
• Mel shares her rule for personal content: if she reveals something difficult, she tries to return later with a lesson or takeaway rather than simply unloading online.
• Alicia and Mel close with practical advice for practitioners who are just starting out: be gentle, expect discomfort, show your face, and protect your energy with boundaries around app use.
  

Connect with Mel:

• Instagram
• Website

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram
• Facebook

• Website

Resources & Links:

• Use Paubox for all of your email needs - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year

• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup

• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

• Run Your Practice with Jane - use the practice management software that both Mel and Alicia discuss in the show

• In this episode, Alicia reframes networking as relationship building, not schmoozing or selling.

• She challenges the fear that therapists in the same niche are competition, and explains why they can actually become your strongest referral sources.

• She shares why therapists with full caseloads, waitlists, or referral overflow are often the best people to connect with.

• Alicia emphasizes using the same skills therapists already use in the therapy room: curiosity, attunement, and genuine relationship-building.

• She suggests practical ways to get in the room, including covering a colleague’s leave, joining consultation groups, attending supervision groups, and speaking at local events.

• She stresses the importance of being dependable and easy to refer to, with a smooth intake or response process.

• She expands the referral conversation beyond therapists to include primary care doctors, psychiatrists, school counselors, attorneys, dietitians, PT, OT, clergy, and more.

• Alicia highlights the often-overlooked role of gatekeepers like receptionists, office managers, and intake coordinators in larger group practices.

• She walks through the value of being able to clearly and confidently explain who you serve, what you do, and what outcomes your practice supports.

• She closes by encouraging listeners to start small with one therapist coffee chat and one follow-up email in the next 30 days.

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram

• Facebook

• Website

• Use Paubox for all of your email needs - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup

• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Alicia Murray talks with Aubrey Richardson LPC about therapist burnout, why self-care advice often misses the point, and how private practice can unintentionally recreate the same stressors clinicians hoped to escape. Aubrey shares her own burnout story, what changed in her work, and practical ways therapists can start noticing problems earlier.

Connect with Aubrey

• ⁠Connect with Aubrey on Instagram⁠
• ⁠Grab Aubrey’s Burnout Freebies⁠

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• ⁠Instagram⁠
• ⁠Facebook⁠
• ⁠Website⁠
  

Resources & Links:

• ⁠⁠Use Paubox for all of your email needs⁠⁠ - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• ⁠⁠Private Practice Launch Kit⁠⁠ - Get started with your practice branding and setup
• ⁠⁠HQ Marketing Community⁠⁠ - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Alicia Murray talks with Kelsey Kehoe, a licensed marriage and family therapist with over 15 years in private practice, about the realities of being a therapist, business owner, and mom at the same time. Kelsey shares how she rebuilt her practice after a major life shift, why burnout shows up so quickly when capacity is ignored, and how therapist moms can create more sustainable schedules and boundaries.

Resources and Links:

• Connect with Kelsey on Instagram
• Use Paubox for all of your email needs - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• Private Practice Launch Kit - Get started with your practice branding and setup

• Find Your Niche, Fill Your Practice - An in-depth marketing course
• HQ Marketing Community - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices

Stay Connected with Alicia:

• Instagram
• Facebook

• Website

Alicia Murray talks with Dr. Kellen Scantlebury, a Doctor of Physical Therapy, NSCA certified strength and conditioning specialist, and founder of Fit Club New York, about how he grew from one clinic to four locations across New York City. They dig into expansion strategy, creative lease structures, hiring, delegation, and the mindset shifts needed to scale a practice without losing the heart of it.

Kellen shares how relationships and opportunistic real estate deals fueled expansion, why creative partnerships can lower overhead, and what he learned the hard way about leases, legal protection, and managing a larger team.

Stay Connected with Kellen:

• ⁠Connect with Kellen on Instagram⁠
• ⁠Connect with Kellen’s practice on Instagram⁠
• ⁠Check out Fit Club NY online⁠

Resources and Links:

• ⁠Use Paubox for all of your email needs⁠ - use code THERAPISTHQ for $250 off your first year
• ⁠Private Practice Launch Kit⁠ - Get started with your practice branding and setup
• ⁠Find Your Niche, Fill Your Practice⁠ - An in-depth marketing course
• ⁠HQ Marketing Community⁠ - Ongoing support and marketing tools for private practices
• ⁠Try out Jane free for 30 days⁠ - Kellen and I’s trusted EHR for keeping our practice running