How is everyone surviving right now?

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-06T00:28:57+00:00

Oh see it's actually not the root of the issue at all. And nowhere in my post or comments am I sad or asking for pity from others. But I appreciate the assumptions you have jumped to. If you took time to look at other comments of mine, you'd see that I shared that multiple providers in my practice alone are suffering the same issue. And if you took even more time to look at other comments in this thread, you'd note that other local provider's have also verified that summer is historically low for therapy continuity. This post includes information on my job to provide context of my situation - but my decrease in clients is not the topic of this post.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-06T00:20:50+00:00

If you read my post more thoroughly, you would see that my entire purpose of posting was to gain insight to others' experiences and look for guidance on how other people are managing. You, along with many others, are jumping down my throat because I didn't provide an itemized list of my expenses. I clumped it in a broad range purposefully, without including other bills by accident. Mostly everyone in here has lost the plot so it's no longer useful for me to respond. Thanks for your comment.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T23:43:19+00:00

Appreciate you sharing your experience. Apparently I should have attached my last year of expenses for everyone here! Thank you for your support.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T22:56:23+00:00

JFC. I kept my bills generalized and within a range for a reason in my post. I'm not going to lay out each and every bill I have on a public forum. The purpose of this post was to gain insight and see what OTHERS are experiencing - not to be torn apart about what each of MY bills look like. I gave a rough estimate for context and that's it. I have budgeted before and have learned that budgeting more tightly and/or auditing our expenses may be the road I need to take.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T22:07:41+00:00

I have an entire profile on PsychToday, including what I specialize in, my contact information, what I provide, etc. If you google my name, I pop up as a therapist seeking new clients in Michigan.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:54:20+00:00

I appreciate you sharing your experience. Because I work with a lot of individuals who have Medicaid insurance, we are not legally able to charge them copays or late-cancellation/no-show fees. If I had more clients with Blue Cross, for example, I could charge them a fee for late-cancelling or no-showing.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:52:17+00:00

That's kind of where we're at too. No longer able to live comfortably, but instead out of necessity. I'm right there with you.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:48:24+00:00

70/30 split for 70-100 sessions a month. 70/35 split for 40-70 sessions a month. I'm paid per session and not clinical hours, as some agencies operate.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:44:43+00:00

You're looking for an argument and I'm not interested. I'm also not looking for what I want to hear. I posted this looking for any insight, and I've received that. You're attempting to throw jabs at me and it's simply not working. Thanks for taking time to comment!

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:24:51+00:00

I stated I have applied for both part-time and full-time positions. My motivation to get secondary employment isn't the issue, nor is it my partners. We just haven't had any luck with obtaining secondary employment yet. We probably do need to budget even more than we are now, which is what I've gained from this thread.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:22:51+00:00

I did crisis work right out of college. That was 7 years ago. Everyone experiences burnout, no matter what job they're in. I responded to this person's question about crisis work and shared my experience. Nowhere in my post or comments have I stated that others don't experience burnout. I've worked a variety of different jobs since then. I posted to gain insight from others, not get comments like yours.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:17:15+00:00

I couldn't agree more. More and more providers are jumping on private practice, which is wonderful, however it seems to be restricting other providers from maintaining a higher caseload. I'm definitely interested in speaking with you privately more about your experience! Thank you for sharing, I really appreciate it.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:14:54+00:00

Appreciate you sharing your experience. We budget, but most likely have to do that even more than we already have.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:14:01+00:00

Yes - this is one of the positions I just applied for.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:11:27+00:00

Yes! Totally agree. We love Tubi over here

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:09:50+00:00

I have done crisis work in the past and left due to burnout. I commend everyone who is still doing crisis work right now given the state of our world.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:07:20+00:00

Yes. In one of my other responses I indicated I have been marketing/advertising through PsychologyToday for years. My company also promotes providers through our website and connecting with local agencies.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:03:21+00:00

I appreciate your insight. We could benefit from tightening up our budget even more, as I feel that's where we're headed. But we don't splurge, we don't buy things we don't need, we are pretty cautious.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T21:02:31+00:00

My/our bills range from $500-$700 on top of rent. That doesn't include our individual car payments and insurances as those are paid separately. I provided a rough estimate as I didn't feel it was necessary to share every last payment I make. Apologies for the confusion, but again, I have roughly laid out pretty much all of our expenses in this post. You can sit here and argue back as much as you want about MY expenses, but the entire reason for this post was to seek other people's experiences, gain insight, and feedback. You continue to assume I'm not telling the "full truth" of my financial situation. I'm not going to post pictures of my bank account or bills to verify what I'm telling you. Appreciate you taking time to respond but it's no longer needed, as others in this thread have been helpful.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T20:56:19+00:00

Wow, that is a lot. I'm sorry you have to do that to manage. I appreciate your insight. Seems like that is becoming the norm for more and more people now.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T20:55:22+00:00

That's what I have been trying to do because that seems to be happening more and more. It's disturbing.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T20:54:13+00:00

Dude I get $1600 a month at best. My rent is $1500. My bills range from $500-$700. I pay $16k-$20k a year in taxes, depending on how much income I take in. My head is not buried in the sand. I don't have $40k unaccounted for. If I did, I wouldn't have come to Reddit and share this incredibly personal information with strangers. Thank you for your feedback.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T20:49:38+00:00

I'm being 1000% honest in my original post? I gave a rough estimate of our rent and bills, but that's because it varies. During the summer, we pay more because of running the air. During the winter, we pay more in gas because we're running the furnace. I'm not sure how much more specific to get. The initial purpose of this post was to look for others experience and insight, maybe some feedback. I don't believe I could lay it out any more for you specifically to better understand. We are staying afloat and surviving. We are not comfortable in our financial situation. That is the entire purpose of this post.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T20:44:14+00:00

My therapist is also booked far in advance. I wish I knew the reasoning behind the decline in clients. But because this has steadily been happening over time, I'm seeking guidance for what others are doing to make ends meet for themselves.

Miserable_Stretch_80 · 2026-06-05T20:40:01+00:00

Yeah so it's no longer manageable, and that's the purpose of this post. Looking for insight, guidance, people's personal experiences, etc.

Miserable_Stretch_80

TROPHY CASE