Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in mental wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Callie Tepper-Lewis, Owner of Tepper Psychotherapy, located in Cortlandt Manor, NY, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
I am Callie Tepper-Lewis, a psychotherapist and somatic practitioner. I started Tepper Psychotherapy to bring a somatically integrative approach to clients seeking mental health therapy. For too long, the mind and body have been viewed as separate entities when really they continuously inform and interact with one another.
Weaving somatic and body-based interventions into the psychodynamic talk-therapy process, I work with my clients to step into more mindful and embodied lives. My clients may be seeking healing from trauma, anxiety, depression, or mood disorders or may be wanting to become more aware of and in tune with their body-based knowledge and how it can enrich their relationships and day-to-day lives. I work with individuals, couples, and families.
Tell us about yourself
As a lifelong dancer, hiker, and 200-hour certified yoga instructor, movement has always been essential to my mental and emotional well-being. When I learned of somatic practices within the mental health field, such as dance/movement psychotherapy, it was a wonderful moment of feeling recognized in my belief in the power of the mind-body connection. Since then, I have been working to bring this embodied mental health experience to others and have had the fortune of witnessing countless inspiring therapeutic journeys when integrating body-based interventions with traditional talk therapy.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Cultivating and maintaining my therapeutic relationships. It takes a great deal of courage and vulnerability from clients to identify areas of their lives they would like to transform, and I am proud to create a safe and compassionate environment where my clients feel comfortable exploring current-day stressors, past events, relationships, and patterns that may not be serving them well.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
It can be quite lonely starting a private practice, especially after years of working in mental health hospitals and agencies. It is also a bit daunting knowing that all the decisions lie on your shoulders!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Find a mentor and invest your time and effort in that relationship. It’s been invaluable being able to seek advice and guidance from others in private practice whom I respect and admire.
- Create a community of peers. Engaging in consultation as a psychotherapist is important for providing the best care we can for our clients, and it’s also a great antidote to the loneliness that can come with being in private practice.
- Keep learning. Continuing my education in psychotherapy and business practices is essential to my private practice development and evolution!
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
It can be unfamiliar or uncomfortable to think of incorporating body-based interventions into traditional talk therapy. If you find yourself automatically turned off by the idea, it could be great to ask yourself why this is! Once we detangle the internalized messages of a mind-body split, we can begin to develop a mind-body connection that can lead to a wonderfully present and embodied way to move through life.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.tepperpsychotherapy.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tepperpsychotherapy/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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