Therapy Tea: Demystifying the Mental Health Profession

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Podcast by Jazmin Crookes, LPC and Karen Jennett, LPC

Therapy Tea: Demystifying the Mental Health Profession

Why, oh why, did I become a therapist? What was I thinking?!? Am I losing it? Or was I just misinformed?.... Join Therapy Tea hosts, Jazmin and Karen, two licensed professional counselors, every other Wednesday, as they, with the help of other mental health professionals, seek to find the answers to these deep, gut-wrenching, existential questions. Each episode, they interview fellow counselors and other professionals working in the mental health field to discuss mistakes they’ve made, career mis-steps, and those “ah-ha!” and “AHHHHHHH!!!!” moments that shift perspective. They cover the real-life practice of mental health work through a pretentious-free lens and reveal the out-of-the-textbook realities of counseling theories. All the while, they hope desperately to gain some hindsight insights on all the things they wish they had known before becoming counselors.
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Latest episodes

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12 August 2026

56. Getting in Trouble for Smiling and Being an Inpatient “Stayer” (ft. Lori Stelzer, LPC-S)

This week Karen learned that when it comes to practice management styles, she prefers the “unbundled” approach. When it comes to managing a solo private practice there are almost Too many different ways to do it; it becomes another place for decision fatigue to sink in. But one thing Karen’s using and loving is Ivy Pay. You can use this magic link to get $1000 in free charges: https://app.talktoivy.com/rTeVsZhSu5b (The link has Karen’s code.)

This week we are sharing our conversation with Lori Stelzer who is a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor in Texas. She holds a Bachelor of Psychology from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale and a Master of Mental Health Counseling from Capella University. Lori works at an in-patient rehab facility in Texas, The Meadows, where she is a family education therapist.

With Lori we talk about what it’s like to be a “stayer” doing addiction-focused inpatient work. She does all the things, from running groups and working with providing psychoeducation, to supervising others and managing administrative tasks. Lori is a born educator and is always sharing nuggets of information and wisdom in our conversation. It’s also amazing to hear about the hurdles Lori has overcome to get to where she is now, from the death of a supervisor, to her own addiction recovery journey, to having to start over to get her internship hours, we’re just impressed Lori pushed through it all!

Resources mentioned:

PLEASE SUPPORT! If you are so inclined to support the show financially, please consider giving us a donation here: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/SM42FSQD6C3GG

Thank you for listening! By the way, if you're curious about how we produce this show, we use Alitu. It's straightforward to use and has made podcasting actually sustainable for us. Use code tea50 at Alitu.com for 50% off if you want to try it yourself!

Thoughts? Questions? Email us at therapyteapod@gmail.com

Follow us on Instagram: @therapyteapod https://www.instagram.com/therapyteapod/

Disclaimer: This podcast is not therapy and does not establish a professional, therapeutic counseling relationship. All statements made on this podcast by hosts and guests are their individual personal perspectives only and are not necessarily shared by anyone else. The hosts and guests on this podcast are not speaking on behalf of all mental health professionals or the profession as a whole.

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29 July 2026

55. Making Imago Cool Again and Relationship Intensives Exclusively (ft. Shlomo Slatkin, LCPC)

This week Jazmin learned that her habits really do keep happening, even though she’s made some big changes. She shares what she’s been noticing about how taxing “small” "thoughtless" daily tasks can be and what impact it’s having on her to shift out of those as her work changes. How do you manage mundane, monotonous soul-sucking tasks?? How often are you checking your work email when you’re not *technically* working??

This week we are sharing our conversation with Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin who is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor in Maryland. He holds both a Bachelor of Arts in Middle Eastern Studies from George Washington University in DC and a Master of Science in Counseling Psychology from Loyola College in Baltimore. Shlomo is a Certified Imago Relationship Therapist and currently is in private practice where he works with couples, but he’s also on the faculty at the Imago Training Institute.

With Shlomo we talk about what’s different about being a couples counselor vs. an individual counselor AND what’s unique about the Imago modality. Shlomo shares how his personally rewarding experience with Imago therapy motivated him to learn more about it, specialize in it and work exclusively with couples using this modality. We love that Shlomo shares his secret to navigating the marketing morass of private practice: marry a marketing minded

Resources mentioned:

PLEASE SUPPORT! If you are so inclined to support the show financially, please consider giving us a donation here: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/SM42FSQD6C3GG

Thank you for listening! By the way, if you're curious about how we produce this show, we use Alitu. It's straightforward to use and has made podcasting actually sustainable for us. Use code tea50 at Alitu.com for 50% off if you want to try it yourself!

Thoughts? Questions? Email us at therapyteapod@gmail.com

Follow us on Instagram: @therapyteapod https://www.instagram.com/therapyteapod/

Disclaimer: This podcast is not therapy and does not establish a professional, therapeutic counseling relationship. All statements made on this podcast by hosts and guests are their individual personal perspectives only and are not necessarily shared by anyone else. The hosts and guests on this podcast are not speaking on behalf of all mental health professionals or the profession as a whole.

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15 July 2026

54. An Athlete, A Band Nerd, and A Theater Kid Get on a Podcast... (ft. Jeremy McCall, LMSW)

This week Karen learned it’s an absolute pain and the as to switch EHRs/practice management software systems in private practice. Karen shares about how it’s been a black hole of research, trial runs, and repetitive work trying to find a system that does just what she wants and not a ton more than that. She’s still undecided and taking applications for virtual assistants…more to come as the decision-making saga unfolds!

This week we are sharing our conversation with Jeremy McCall who is a Licensed Master Social Worker and Certified Mental Health Performance Coach in Michigan. He holds both a Bachelor of Social Work and a Master of Social Work from Wayne State University. Jeremy currently works as a social worker in an elementary school in a Detroit area school district, but he’s worked with all ages and levels in the school system. Jeremy also has a private practice where he provides therapy and coaching for individuals, teens, and families and focuses on the mental health and performance issues of elite athletes, coaches and teams in a variety of sports and activities.

With Jeremy we talk about his experiences working in an underprivileged public school setting. Jeremy shares how he got started working with athletes on mental health and performance issues, and the unique challenges and circumstances of that population.

Resources mentioned:

  • Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck
  • How Emotions Are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain by Lisa Feldman Barrett
  • The Talent Code: Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown. Here's How. by Daniel Coyle,
  • The Art of War by Sun Tzu
  • Find Jeremy here: https://talktherapyjeremy.clientsecure.me

If you are so inclined to support the show financially, please consider giving us a donation here: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/SM42FSQD6C3GG

Thank you for listening! By the way, if you're curious about how we produce this show, we use Alitu. It's straightforward to use and has made podcasting actually sustainable for us. Use code tea50 at Alitu.com for 50% off if you want to try it yourself!

Thoughts? Questions? Email us at therapyteapod@gmail.com

Follow us on Instagram: @therapyteapod https://www.instagram.com/therapyteapod/

Disclaimer: This podcast is not therapy and does not establish a professional, therapeutic counseling relationship. All statements made on this podcast by hosts and guests are their individual personal perspectives only and are not necessarily shared by anyone else. The hosts and guests on this podcast are not speaking on behalf of all mental health professionals or the profession as a whole.

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01 July 2026

53. We Can Do Assessments Too and Private Practice Gumption (ft. Caitlin DeWeese, LPC)

This week Jazmin learned that it’s a lot of work changing jobs as a counselor: ethical termination is tough! She shares how it’s been as she is transitioning out of the group practice she has been with for awhile as she is working through that transition thoughtfully with her clients. For her, it’s been more intense all around. What’s job change been like for you as a mental health professional?

This week we are sharing our conversation with Caitlin DeWeese who is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Texas. Caitlin holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and Spanish from Baylor University and a Master of Arts in Professional Counseling from Texas State University - San Marcos. Caitlin is currently in private practice based in Austin, Texas. Her practice is called Live Better Austin Therapy and she focuses on working with neurodivergence and providing ADHD and Autism assessments for adults.

With Caitlin we talk about her initial career as a Spanish language teacher in Texas schools and how the mental and physical toll of that career shifted her into becoming a counselor. Caitlin shares her own experience of grappling and coming to terms with her own ADHD diagnosis and how that has impacted her as a clinician. Also, this comes up in our conversation: NARM is NeuroAffective Relational Model. Something we explore with Caitlin is how there are maybe certain personality traits and interests - like being a self-motivated problem solver for fun - that are pretty important if one wants to succeed in private practice.

Resources mentioned:

If you are so inclined to support the show financially, please consider giving us a donation here: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/SM42FSQD6C3GG

Thank you for listening! By the way, if you're curious about how we produce this show, we use Alitu. It's straightforward to use and has made podcasting actually sustainable for us. Use code tea50 at Alitu.com for 50% off if you want to try it yourself!

Thoughts? Questions? Email us at therapyteapod@gmail.com

Follow us on Instagram: @therapyteapod https://www.instagram.com/therapyteapod/

Disclaimer: This podcast is not therapy and does not establish a professional, therapeutic counseling relationship. All statements made on this podcast by hosts and guests are their individual personal perspectives only and are not necessarily shared by anyone else. The hosts and guests on this podcast are not speaking on behalf of all mental health professionals or the profession as a whole.

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27 June 2026

ANNOUNCEMENT: Please Support the Show!

We’re sharing how we broke the show, fixed the show, and confronted our morals and values to arrive at the same place we had originally started: full-length conversation episodes every other week with no ads at all. Fuck the corporate attention miners! Choose where you personally put your attention and support! That’s what we’re all about and want to keep doing. If you agree and want us to keep the show going, please consider directly supporting our efforts in whatever way you can.

If you are so inclined to support the show financially, please consider giving us a donation here: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/SM42FSQD6C3GG

THANK YOU!!! We can only do this through the support of generous listeners like you! (yes, that’s a PBS reference ;-) )

Thank you for listening! By the way, if you're curious about how we produce this show, we use Alitu. It's straightforward to use and has made podcasting actually sustainable for us. Use code tea50 at Alitu.com for 50% off if you want to try it yourself!

Thoughts? Questions? Email us at therapyteapod@gmail.com

Listen to us on YouTube!: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjmM3_WRulJpvstPLZiKOBQ

Follow us on social media:

Facebook: Therapy Tea Podcast https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61552953196482

Instagram: @therapyteapod https://www.instagram.com/therapyteapod/

Disclaimer: This podcast is not therapy and does not establish a professional, therapeutic counseling relationship. All statements made on this podcast by hosts and guests are their individual personal perspectives only and are not necessarily shared by anyone else. The hosts and guests on this podcast are not speaking on behalf of all mental health professionals or the profession as a whole.

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24 June 2026

52. PART 2: Education Advocate and She Always Be Teaching (ft. Megan Silvestri, LMHC)

This week we are sharing the rest of our conversation with Megan Silvestri who is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Florida, originally, but she is also licensed in Virginia, South Carolina and Kentucky. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Education and Humanities from University of Central Florida, and a Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling from Webster University. She also has a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from Florida Southern College.

Resources mentioned:

Thank you for listening! By the way, if you're curious about how we produce this show, we use Alitu. It's straightforward to use and has made podcasting actually sustainable for us. Use code tea50 at Alitu.com for 50% off if you want to try it yourself!

Thoughts? Questions? Email us at therapyteapod@gmail.com

Listen to us on YouTube!: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjmM3_WRulJpvstPLZiKOBQ

Follow us on social media:

Facebook: Therapy Tea Podcast https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61552953196482

Instagram: @therapyteapod https://www.instagram.com/therapyteapod/

Disclaimer: This podcast is not therapy and does not establish a professional, therapeutic counseling relationship. All statements made on this podcast by hosts and guests are their individual personal perspectives only and are not necessarily shared by anyone else. The hosts and guests on this podcast are not speaking on behalf of all mental health professionals or the profession as a whole.

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