Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristen Custer.
Hi Kristen, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in West Virginia, which was wonderful and secure for me in so many ways. My father was a firefighter and my mother a teacher, both providing aid and support to others consistently throughout their careers, likely contributing to my insight at an early age that I wanted to be in a helping or healing profession of some kind. I’m also an eldest daughter who thrives on independence, and has always felt intrinsically driven to protect and empower my younger sister. These qualities followed me into adulthood, and paired with my quest to understand my struggle with anxiety. Once I found the topic of psychology in undergraduate studies, I knew I landed on something special.
My desire for knowledge and learning initially led me to believe I wanted to focus on a career in psychological research, however, I quickly realized I couldn’t let go of my pull to work more closely with others. I consider myself to be introverted and traditionally shy, so this pull surprised me. I sought out a graduate degree in clinical psychology with goal of becoming a licensed clinician. Upon graduating, I taught psychology courses before working for a group practice. I began as an administrative assistant before moving into the role of a clinical professional counselor. Throughout my time at the group practice, I moved into additional roles as a clinical supervisor and clinical director. I will forever be grateful for the experiences and opportunities provided to me at this group practice, I was lucky enough to learn skills in leadership, business organization, supervision, and management that have helped me endlessly today.
During the pandemic, I circled back to fantasies and goals I held for majority of my adult life – I wanted a doctorate. I wanted to achieve the degree designated for the top of the field, to reach new heights of learning and training. I’m so grateful to have had a partner and support system that encouraged me to do just that. In 2022, I joined a cohort for the graduating class of 2027 in a local Psy.D. program. I had to make some adjustments, such as reducing to part time work at the group practice and intentionally planning my time to balance school and life. In 2024, I began feeling overwhelmed and had to make the difficult decision to leave the group practice and open my own solo private practice. While my professional plans have always included owning my independent practice, this happened sooner than I had anticipated. The transition was bittersweet – parting ways with the practice and people who shaped my early career felt like a loss to me, but I had so much excitement about moving forward into my solo practice. Shaping and developing my practice was made easier by the strong network of colleagues and mentors I have providing guidance, and my husband as my go-to sounding board and reminder for self-compassion.
Today, I am in my eighth month of my solo private practice and my third year of the Psy.D. program. Balancing work, school, and personal life has improved, and I’m enjoying planning for the future of my practice once I graduate and obtain my doctoral license as a clinical psychologist.
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?
What I left out of my story to get to this point in my career, is that I hit multiple bumps along the way.
The reason I sought a master’s degree first? I applied to doctorate programs and was rejected by all of them.
The reason I didn’t practice as a clinician right after my master’s program? I misunderstood some aspects of licensing and had not met all the requirements, so I needed more time to complete those. Plus, the externship I had in the final year of my master’s program lacked the clinical support I needed, so I believed “being a therapist” was something I couldn’t do and couldn’t handle.
The reason I entered a doctorate program while nearing 30-years-old? I had applied to doctorate programs at three different times in my life, and this was the first time I had been accepted.
At each of these points, I could have stopped or changed course. I chose to continue on the path I envisioned for my career and instead adapted to these obstacles, found other opportunities, and didn’t stop trying to pursue my goals.
Aside from those snags in my journey, I’ve also had financial obstacles that are typical in funding the opening and operating of a small business, which become even more challenging when you are paying for school and working part time hours. Additionally, having a small business dealing in healthcare, there are added expenses to ensure applications are HIPAA compliant and using electronic health record systems. Diversifying my income by offering varied services and budgeting have been my methods for overcoming financial challenges.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
In my solo practice, I specialize in the treatment of anxiety for adults. I like to say that I’m an anxious human who is passionate about supporting other anxious humans. Majority of my work is providing individual therapy services, but I also offer brief anxiety intensives to help individuals learn basic coping strategies and understand their anxiety symptoms. Additionally, I provide supervision to clinical counselors that are still holding their temporary license that requires supervision for a couple years. This has been an avenue of my career I find very rewarding because I’m able to help other therapists grow into independent practitioners.
I find that there isn’t anything especially unique about what I’m doing and offering through my business. However, each solo private practice is set apart by the personality, character, and passion the owner brings to it. Therapists are bound to showing up authentically and genuine in their practice, so you are likely to look at my practice and see my true self embedded into it.
What am I most proud of? I’m extremely proud of myself for finding a career I love, continually growing, reducing mental health stigma, and reaching outside my comfort zone. Change can’t happen if we’re too comfortable.
Contact Info:
- Website: CusterTherapy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristen.the.therapist?igsh=MWloMWN3bmVwejN0cg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kristencuster.LCPC
Image Credits
The images I’ve shared were taken by me & my sweet friend, Amy!
