What's New? Everything! Navigating changes in the mental health field

I graduated from graduate school 20 years ago…well, 19 years and 11 months to be exact, but who’s counting?! While it seems like just yesterday that I walked across the Thompson Boling Arena stage at the University of Tennessee, it also seems like a lifetime ago. Time is so funny that way. A lot has changed in the mental health industry over the past 20 years, and it feels like the changes are coming faster now than they ever have before. It’s hard to keep up!

Change is hard! Recently, I have had several conversations about how uncomfortable some of the changes in the mental health world are and often there are both pros and cons to all of these changes. AI is always a controversial topic, some people embracing it for improved productivity and others, like myself, wary of the security pitfalls and inauthenticity that comes with it. Venture capital backed tech companies that often are not in the business of supporting therapists or clients but may improve access to treatment. The influx of coaches who certainly help some

people and are also

Sometimes it's all too much!

encroaching on the mental health space with little regulation. New certifications for counseling methodologies offer ways for therapists to deepen their practice and also lead many therapists to feel they are playing Pokemon–gotta catch ‘em all! It’s exhausting and it’s not sustainable.

The change that sits heaviest with me is that it’s become harder to be a full time therapist, be financially secure, and also have an ethical and reasonable caseload. It seems like you can only pick two, or you have to have a side gig to make ends meet. I have read several articles about how quickly people are leaving the mental health field because it's doesn't make sense financially to stay. Most physical health care professionals with similar education requirements are not experiencing the same financial strain with their median salaries being 30% higher than mental health clinicians. The insurance reimbursement rates for mental health are not keeping up with the cost of living and increasing overhead costs of being a therapist. Those tech companies also want a piece of the pie, leaving less money in the bank accounts of therapists who are doing the emotional labor of supporting their clients. The student loans that many therapists have to take out for their education, supervision and licensure costs, and continuing education only add to financial responsibilities therapists have. It’s exhausting and it’s not sustainable.

We hope that this pay discrepancy will be the next thing in the mental health field to change. But until this financial gap is closed and every therapist is able to be paid enough to create their own emergency fund, Therapist Resource Network is here to help therapists in their time of need.