It’s time to reimagine therapy and what it means to be a therapist. We are human beings who can now present ourselves as whole people, with authenticity, purpose, and connection. Especially now, when therapists must develop a personal brand to market their practices. To support you as a whole person and a therapist, your hosts, Curt Widhalm and Katie Vernoy talk about how to approach the role of therapist in the modern age. Interview with Jennifer Blough, LPC Jennifer Blough is a licensed professional counselor, certified compassion fatigue therapist, certified pet loss grief recovery specialist, and the owner of Deepwater Counseling in southeast Michigan. In addition to counseling individuals and couples, she presents compassion fatigue workshops to animal welfare and veterinary organizations. She is the author of the book To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior, and the host of The Compassion Fatigue Podcast. In this episode we talk about: The symptoms of compassion fatigue and how to recognize it Jen’s story and how she became a therapist for animal welfare professionals The buffers for “the normal cost of caring” Self-care and support Compassion satisfaction (getting joy from your work) Focusing her practice on animal welfare professionals and pet loss, without closing herself off to others who she can help The unique challenges of animal welfare professionals and how to support these people with the constant grief and loss associated with caring for animals Considerations for therapists working with animal welfare professionals The vegan lifestyle and how it intersects with the clinical work Suggestions for self-care and coping with compassion fatigue Animal rights activism How to empower yourself rather than traumatize yourself in doing the research and work to support your passion and mission How anger, depression, guilt, and isolation can increase the impact of compassion fatigue Resources mentioned: We’ve pulled together any resources mentioned in this episode and put together some handy-dandy links. The Green Cross Compassion Fatigue Therapist Certification Pet Loss Grief Recovery Specialist Certification The Compassion Fatigue Podcast Deepwater Counseling  Our events: The Brand Called “You”: Legal and Ethical Issues in Developing Your Personal Brand The Therapy Reimagined Conference in Los Angeles in October 2018!! Who we are: Curt Widhalm is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in private practice in the Los Angeles area. He is a Board Member at Large for the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, a Subject Matter Expert for the California Board of Behavioral Sciences, Adjunct Faculty at Pepperdine University, and a loving husband and father. He is 1/2 great person, 1/2 provocateur, and 1/2 geek, in that order. He dabbles in the dark art of making "dad jokes" and usually has a half-empty cup of coffee somewhere nearby. Learn more about Curt at www.curtwidhalm.com. Katie Vernoy is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, coach, and consultant. As a helping professional for two decades, she’s navigated the ups and downs of our unique line of work. She’s run her own solo therapy practice, designed innovative clinical programs, built and managed large, thriving teams of service providers, and consulted hundreds of helping professionals on how to build meaningful AND sustainable practices. In her spare time, Katie is secretly siphoning off Curt's youthful energy, so that she can take over the world. Learn more about Katie at www.katievernoy.com. A Quick Note: Our opinions are our own. We are only speaking for ourselves – except when we speak for each other, or over each other. We’re working on it. Our guests are also only speaking for themselves and have their own opinions. We aren’t trying to take their voice, and no one speaks for us either. Mostly because they don’t want to, but hey. Stay in Touch: www.mtsgpodcast.com https://www.facebook.com/therapyrei