Today we’d like to introduce you to Tamara Elassal.
Hi Tamara, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began my career as a Middle School teacher. I loved helping the kids with their problems such as bullies and issues at home. One day in the teacher’s lounge another teacher was talking about how amazing it felt when something finally ‘clicked’ with a student, that moment when they just got it! I said to myself, that moment doesn’t matter to me, to me it was the moment a teenager felt heard, understood, accepted for who they were – that was the moment that I felt like it was all worth it! I realized I was in the right place, just in the wrong part of the building! Shortly thereafter I began studying School Counseling. But it didn’t take long for me to realize that this wasn’t quite right either – I didn’t want to be limited to only seeing students in need 1-2 hrs per school year – I wanted to be there for them long term and I moved out of school counseling and into mental health counseling eventually becoming an LPC. Working at an out of network (cash based) office and being unable to provide my services to bigger range of clientele and I branched out on my own and started Mind Meadow Counseling. With the help of my son who was able to navigate the business side, including accepting insurance, I was able to focus on the clinical side I loved and focus on just providing care. My love of teaching had not entirely left me and I trained in supervision and created a program that I believed mattered. Mental Health Providers have very high rates of burnout, there are not enough providers to meet the tremendous mental health demands in our country. My program is built around collaboration and self-care in order to create a healthy work environment for our staff and that in turn reflects in the care they offer to our clients.
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?
The biggest struggle is the business end. As I explained, my son, who had worked on opening urgent cares and testing centers during covid knew the ins and outs of opening this type of a practice. Because of his work and dedication to my vision we have been able to grow from a single provider in a single office to an office of three to our current office of eight. We also employ a biller and a full time administrative assistant, in just a few short years! But we have learned and continue to learn about the pitfalls of accepting insurance and while I am still committed to providing care to people that cannot afford out of pocket, it is not easy to keep the practice afloat with some of the difficulties we run into with insurance payouts. Another area that is challenging is the broader mental health picture that we see, issues with higher levels of care for individuals that are in need can be so disheartening for the families of those in need and the providers such as us who cannot find better alternatives, especially for those that need to utilize insurance benefits.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Mind Meadow Counseling?
Mind Meadow Counseling has a brand new office suite which provides mental health therapy services for children, adolescents, and adults, as well as couples and families. We have a wide range of providers who use different modalities to meet the needs of our clients. We have providers who are experienced with: LGBTQ+, neurodivergence, Autism, behavioral concerns at home/school, multicultural, trauma, medical concerns, chronic pain/illness, and more. We have multiple providers that specialize in trauma and EMDR. For children we have after school snacks, prizes and plenty of creative play therapy, sand tray and therapeutic interventions. Our office is centrally located on Jermantown Rd just north of Fairfax Boulevard in Fairfax near 50, 66, and the Fairfax County Parkway. We accept most major insurance including TriCare. The thing that sets us apart is our commitment to providing a peaceful safe environment for our clients, and the support we give to our providers which allows them to focus purely on client care and very little else. Our commitment to caring for our providers means that our clients are doubly cared cared for.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
When I see the providers interacting with and supporting one another and taking the time to care for themselves I feel like I created the environment that I envisioned as a perfect workplace. When I look around our new office suite and notice how tranquil the environment is, I swell with pride. When I see the clients succeed and parents say things such as, “we never thought this was possible”, then I know what we do matters!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.Mind-Meadow.com
