How I Started My Private Practice: Becoming the Essential Teletherapist

How I Started My Private Practice: Finding Flexibility, Freedom, and Fulfillment

Trigger Warning: This post includes mentions of medical trauma, specifically related to childbirth and my husband's health. Please feel free to skip or take your time if these topics are difficult for you.

As a speech-language pathologist, the idea of starting a private teletherapy practice never occured to me but at the same time I wanted more flexibility for my family, creative freedom to work with clients in ways that felt right for me, and, frankly, I didn’t want a daily commute! On top of that, I wanted to increase my income while still having a variety of enriching experiences with clients. These reasons are what set me on the path toward starting my own practice. But as you can probably imagine, the journey wasn’t straightforward.

Getting Started: The Influence of Jena Castro-Casbon

The real turning point came in 2022 when I enrolled in Jena Castro-Casbon’s Start Your Private Practice course. Jena’s course offered a clear, step-by-step guide on how to get started, from the logistics to the big picture. Beyond that, it included a supportive community in a Facebook group. The group was a game changer—having peers who were also on their private practice journeys, cheering me on, kept me motivated and accountable. Her course transformed how I viewed my career; it made me realize that I didn’t have to fit my life around work. I could design a practice that fit into my life.

In 2023 and 2024, I began working on my private practice part-time, mostly during the summer months. Throughout the academic year, I worked for an SLP-owned teletherapy company, which allowed me to balance both worlds and build confidence in my abilities.

Life-Threatening Changes: My Daughter's Early Birth

However, in the spring of 2024, everything shifted. I gave birth to my beautiful daughter, Juniper, eight weeks early due to severe preeclampsia. I had to undergo an emergency C-section, and in that moment, my world turned upside down. As if that wasn’t enough, my husband was diagnosed with a heart condition just a week after Juniper’s birth.

At this point, things were chaotic, and I had to return to work just six days after my emergency C-section—six days after giving birth prematurely. Since I was an independent contractor with a contract tied to the academic year and didn’t have paid family leave, I had to rely on the six days of PTO I had accumulated over the past two years. The financial pressure meant I had to return to work quickly, but my goal was clear: I needed to get back to work so that I could be fully present and take proper maternity leave once Juniper was home from the NICU.

Time to Reflect: Pushing for Change

Later that summer, after having time to reflect, I finally began to process what had happened. I read and reread my medical charts, realizing how close I had come to serious, even life-threatening complications. It was a sobering realization—one that made me reevaluate everything. I could have suffered permanent brain damage or worse. And on top of that, my husband was dealing with his heart condition, which made me realize that he shouldn’t be working as many hours as he had been.

I knew something had to change. So, I sat down and wrote out everything I wanted for my family. I was determined to make it work. Then, I told my husband: I wasn’t going to return to my previous job in the same capacity. I decided to go all in on my private practice and find my own school contracts.

I was worried, though. One of my strengths with ADHD is my creativity, but sometimes those big ideas come without a clear "how-to" roadmap. I knew how my grandiose ideas could appear to others, and I was a little self-conscious about how that might come across. But my husband was incredibly supportive, reassuring me that we could make it work.

Finding My True Passion: Mentoring SLPs

Originally, my private practice was named Connections Speech & Language Therapy LLC because I deeply believe that communication brings people together. It’s at the heart of everything we do as speech therapists. But as I began to dive deeper into what I truly wanted for my career, I discovered something unexpected. I really loved working with other SLPs—helping them become proficient at teletherapy was more than just fulfilling; it became a true passion of mine.

Mentoring SLPs on how to excel in teletherapy and coaching them on their journeys has been the absolute highlight of my time. Watching them grow in confidence, skill, and enthusiasm for virtual speech therapy was incredibly rewarding. As much as I love working directly with clients, I found that this was my major calling: guiding other SLPs to success in the world of teletherapy. It felt like everything I’d been through—both personally and professionally—had led me to this place of mentorship and leadership.  At this point, I am becoming the Essential Teletherapist ;o)

The Role of Elise Mitchell and School Contracting

This next stage of my journey is one I owe to Elise Mitchell. I took her course on school contracting, which gave me the step-by-step instructions I needed to confidently reach out to schools and market myself as a virtual option. Her guidance was invaluable—she showed me how to navigate school contracts, from identifying the right contacts to pitching my services and structuring contracts. Her course gave me the confidence to take this big step and fully commit to private practice.

Going All In: Building My Future

In the summer of 2024, I made the decision to dive headfirst into my private practice. It was time to take control of my career, my time, and ultimately, my future. With my private practice, I could be present for my family in ways I hadn’t been able to before. The best part? I now had creative freedom to shape my practice exactly how I wanted, while focusing on what truly mattered to me.

Starting my private practice hasn’t been without challenges, but I know this was the right decision for me and my family. It has given me the flexibility I craved, the financial stability we needed, and most importantly, the ability to be home with my kids. It’s also allowed my husband to take a step back and not work as many hours.

Final Thoughts: Finding Your Own Path

If you’re considering starting your own private practice, or if you’re thinking about adding school contracting to your existing practice, I can’t recommend Jena Castro Casbon and Elise Mitchell enough. *Shoot me a message for a coupon for Elise Mitchell’s products! Their courses, knowledge, and support have transformed my career, and they can do the same for you.

If you’re looking for guidance, I’d love to be a resource for you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out—I’d be happy to share what I’ve learned along the way.

If you’re looking to make the transition to teletherapy, I invite you to check out The Essential Teletherapist course.  The course guides you through seven modules with everything you need to know to get started and excel in teletherapy, paired with guidance and peer mentorship.

Starting a private practice isn’t easy, but it’s incredibly rewarding. I hope my story inspires you to take the leap if you’ve been thinking about it. Your career can work for you, and with the right resources and support, you can find the flexibility and fulfillment you’ve been looking for - it just looks a little different than how we’ve been trained.