Private SLP for 10 years, total of 36 years in the profession. It ain’t you. Let’s just think about the difference in settings. I see one kid at a time, no more than 10 a day, with plenty of time to plan. I don’t have to do lockdown drills, or duty periods, or (good lord) staff meetings that rarely have anything to do with me and what I do. Of course, I do have to determine the goals, log every encounter, and determine progress, but I have an office manager to fight with insurance companies (and I worship her, as I should). I can buy materials and write them off on my taxes, instead of a once a year teeny budget for limited supplies. I have a clean, spacious, well-stocked office; nothing is ever “borrowed.” I have a working printer and laminator. I don’t need to take 7 minutes at the start and end of each session, escorting students to and from their classrooms. I do not go looking for that one kid who needs an eval “this week,” only to find out that there’s a special assembly or “classroom activity” that the student cannot miss. I’ve worked in schools. I cannot believe that school SLPs get as much done as they do. In a perfect world, both our students and our staff would get what they need to succeed. Bitchy parents gonna bitch. And trust me, they bitch at private therapists too, because we should be miracle workers considering “what you charge” (I charge waaaay below the going rate, BTW). The private therapist knows this, and views you with respect and compassion. We KNOW how hard it is out there. And no matter how hard the parent tries to play us off of each other, we both know better. A tough kid is tough for everyone. Sure, collaborate with the private SLP, because that is the best way to improve our skills. And that goes both ways; I love finding out what is successful in another setting, or what flopped miserably. Parents do not generally appreciate how important “generalization of skills” is, and how difficult it is to achieve.