Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Osborn.
Lisa, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
There are many different phases to my story and they all serve an important role in where I have ended up today, a social worker of 15 years, a therapist of 7 years, and a woman entrepreneur and private practice owner of 2 years. I’m definitely not one of those “I always knew I wanted to be a therapist” kind of therapist and honestly, as a highly sensitive introvert, I’m still a little shocked that this is where I ended up! Although the tests say this career matches perfectly….
My father was an accountant and my mother worked for the school district – both areas that didn’t sound super appealing, so I was a little bit on my own to find my own direction and I didn’t really get a strong footing as to what this may be until year 5 of post graduate education.
I was born in Tulsa and moved to Houston when I was 10….and hated it (it can be hard for sensitive children to adjust!). So I went back to Oklahoma for my undergrad at Oklahoma State University and after a very short stint in physical therapy and leisure studies (yes, this is a real thing!) I landed in Human Development and Family Studies. I knew I wanted to work with people, and I really wanted to learn about how humans work and function in our environment in order to provide preventative and proactive care in some way.
In late high school I became involved with the Catholic Church (which I think it served more of a socializing purpose) and I was also a high performing athlete for an incredibly competitive volleyball team and school district.
These two places are where some of my anxiety, people pleasing, (shame/guilt, self-judgment and perfectionism began to form. I was also a very independent child, needing for not a lot, which created some hyper-independence and difficulty asking for help as an adult (more on that later!). Definitely the recipe for a overachieving business owner!
After graduating from OSU, I decided to pursue my Master’s in Social work at the University of Texas in Austin, partly because this is what I thought I was “supposed to do” as the natural next step and partly because there wasn’t anything else I wanted to do…I was very good at being a student (again, over achieving perfectionism).
The school of social work at UT is very good at what they do regarding field placements and challenging any biases students may have. My first internship was working with pregnant teens in a high school and while I was already slowly starting to walk away from the Catholic faith and shifting my own beliefs, this really helped me challenge my belief systems and question why they were there in the first place. Let’s just say I did a LOT of growing during my masters living in Austin. I absolutely loved this internship and had the best supervisor and classmates. They taught me a lot.
Somewhere along the way, I gained interest in child welfare and working with childhood trauma – I think it was the preventative care part of me…it just made sense! My final internship was working as a family advocate for the Center for Child Protection Child Advocacy Center which I absolutely LOVED. Graduating with my masters shot me off into a decade of working with non-profits in the child welfare system in three different cities.
During this time, I worked with a child placement agency and early childhood intervention in Austin, CASA in Jefferson Parish in New Orleans, CASA in San Antonio, and then back at a Child Advocacy Center in Guadalupe County where I started my official career as a therapist – it came back full circle!
I received my clinical hours while working at the CAC and my official license in February 2020 – right before COVID. I decided I wanted to try branch out of the non-profit world, which was very, very scary to me. Heck, even getting out of an advocacy role and into direct therapy practice was scary! Lots and lots of imposter syndrome creeped in but I just poured myself into the work and kept going. To help, I decided to take the group practice route to ease into the private practice world. I started working with a group practice in Buda while I was still working at the CAC in Guadalupe County. It was just me, myself, and I so I had to continue working at the CAC for steady income. This was a very interesting time with COVID lockdowns and adjusting to not only the private practice world but also to the online therapy world. I remember someone talking about doing therapy online long before COVID and I thought they were out of their mind! Haha, joke’s on me!
After gaining confidence in my therapy skills and running a private practice, I decided it was time to open my own practice, Real Well Therapy, where I can really focus on the work I do best with clients. This was the #1 scariest thing I’ve ever done and the #1 best decision I could have made for myself!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Phew, I would love to say the past 15 years have been an easy, breasy road but that would make for a boring story! 🙂 There are many personal and professional challenges I’ve had to overcome along the way. There’s nothing like providing therapy to others to make you more aware of your own difficulties and struggles. I moved to three very difference cities and had to adjust to cultural challenges and being out of my comfort zone. It was difficult at times, but I think it was really pivotal in learning about people which still helps me in my work today.
I also went through a very challenging break up while in the think of finishing my clinical hours and had to manage a new medical diagnosis right after opening up my private practice. Both of which have shaped who I work with and how I do my work to some degree.
When I opened my practice, I did not know how to sign up for my own health insurance so I didn’t not have insurance at the time of my diagnosis. This was super scary and sent my anxiety through the roof. I was also having to managing chronic pain and figuring out medical appointments on top of growing my practice and working through the learning curve with all things it takes to run a business. (ps – I have heath insurance now!).
One year after opening, I ended up having to have an invasive surgery that put me on medical leave for 4 weeks, which is anxiety provoking as a business owner to have to plan for PTO during this time! I also struggle with health and medical anxiety, causing unending thought ruminations, overthinking galore, worst-case scenario conclusions, and a lesson in letting go of control.
Once this all settled out, I was confronted with a lot of existential challenges and difficult emotions. I really realized at this time that I was using work to cope with different things in my life and as an avoidance strategy. Therapy has been a non-negotiable for me as I’ve worked hard to process through these things. It’s not always easy work, but it’s imperative to our emotional and physical well-being.
While it was challenging, I am very proud of myself for navigating it all and still growing my practice at the same time (here comes that high achieving part again!).
Professionally – I dealt with major burnout and compassion fatigue while working for the non-profits and group practice. Trauma work can be a dark place and I didn’t needed more control over my professional life.
There are also lots and lots of challenges of running your own business and private practice. I all of a sudden with from professional therapy provider and note taker to marketing director, graphic designer, accountant and bookkeeper (my dad loves this!!), scheduler, SEO expert, website designer & developer, networker, social media manger, content creator, and videographer. It’s a lot to navigate but so, so worth it.
As you know, we’re big fans of Real Well Therapy, PLLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
I specialize in helping overachieving, overwhelmed anxious millennial women and teens go from self-doubt to confident. I tend to attract a lot of perfectionists and people pleasers (lots of things to be anxious about when you’re trying to be perfect and please other!) and I work really, really well with these clients. I also believe I am a true anxiety expert both from personal lived experience in ongoing through with anxiety and working through societal expectations placed on women.
In my work with clients, I use a practical, authentic, and individualized approach to help them understand themselves better, learn new skills to manage the stress of their day, and support them during life’s ever-constant changes and transitions.
A lot of clients come to me because they’ve done therapy in the past and didn’t feel like it offered them enough of what they were looking for. They’ll tell me they understand the “why” but never got a good grasp on what to do with it. This is the work I love to do – to help you figure out what to do with what’s there, to help you get out of your head and into the present moment, and to hold you accountable for the BS that may be getting in your way (while also bringing in the beloved validation, when needed).
I help my clients in session by offering a fresh perspective and practical tools from mindfulness, EMDR, attachment and psychodynamic theories and a dabble in CBT (aka fancy names for fancy therapy techniques that many of my clients find helpful).
I truly live for the moments when clients go from anxious and overwhelmed to being able to communicate their needs, set a boundary, or use a skill in the real world that helps them respond rather than react. And also be able to ditch self-judgment they may have about being anxious or needing help and accepting themselves for where they are in the process.
How do you define success?
I define success as any moments that make you wear a little smile, pat yourself on the back, or do a little dance, even if the outcome wasn’t perfect. We live in a society where we are putting so much pressure on ourselves to do great things and be everything for every one all the time while looking chill while we do it. It’s no wonder anxiety is on the rise!
For me, it’s knowing that I did the best that I could in the moment with the capacity that’s available (which can look different every day). It’s saying “no” and asking for help more often. Noticing the things around me a little more when I’m stuck stuck in my head. Taking time to appreciate the taste of my favorite foods and the smell of my coffee in the morning. Not putting up with BS that doesn’t service me. Slowing down for just a few small moments throughout the day. Challenging the voice in my head when they’re being an a-hole being an a-hole. And of course, any moments of success for my clients is a moment of success for me.
Pricing:
- Individual counseling – $150
- EMDR therapy intensives – $180
Contact Info:
- Website: www.realwelltherapy.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/realwelltherapy
- Facebook: facebook.com/realwelltherapy
- Other: pinterest.com/realwelltherapy
Image Credits
Laurel Coyle Photographs
