Today we’d like to introduce you to Samantha Lopez.
Hi Samantha, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My story was colorful starting from the day I was born! Born over two months premature and weighing less than two pounds, I was the lone survivor of a twin birth with an overflow of complications both medical and physical. How did all of this lead to the creation of The Therapy Innovation? As a child, I learned very quickly that children have very little compassion and understanding for others who are different from them. As a young adult, I learned that this compassion and understanding needed to be modeled starting at home, and then at school. So I knew from age eight that I wanted to be a teacher. So at age twenty one I began my journey, starting off as a Head Start parent, then a Head Start volunteer, then a Head Start teacher, and left Head Start after seventeen years, finishing out as their mental health consultant. Head Start is a program with a whole child approach, looking not only at the child, but looking at the family, going into the home and working with the parents on their terms, meeting the family where they are, and helping them navigate to where they would like to be. I loved that idea but I felt like I wanted to do more. So I went back to school and became a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. As an MFT intern, I worked for many different kinds of programs and eventually decided on private practice. In private practice I knew I could do things my way (within legal and ethical guidelines of course.) After two years in private practice, I once again realized private practice just was not enough, and thought that with a group practice I could do so much more! I could work with MFT interns to help them learn a different way to see clients. And so we became, The Therapy Innovation, A Different Way To See You.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Attempting to grow a solo practice into a thriving group practice does have its challenges. Most of those challenges have to do with managing insurance. Most insurances have the notion that mental struggles get cured! Not only do they get cured, but they get cured within seven to ten sessions! Well, I have yet to see this unicorn of an expectation come to fruition! In fact, mental health care is an individual journey without a designated finish line. In order to combat this fantasy notion, The Therapy Innovation applied and has been approved for 501c3 operation (non profit status) which will allow for grants and donations to help bridge the gap between insurance regulations and the needs of the community we serve.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about The Therapy Innovation ?
At The Therapy Innovation we do not see clients, we see people. Our goal is to continue to learn and grow alongside the beloved community we serve and continue to not only meet the needs of our community but to exceed them.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Thetherapyinn.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61569927430316
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=The+Therapy+Innovaiton
- Other: https://share.google/DwPN8xuIOYFUIT4zt
