The State of Therapy: Why Therapists Are in High Demand and How to Stand Out
So, you want to start or grow a private counseling practice in 2025. Maybe you’re sneaking this blog post between Zoom clients, or perhaps you’re deep in the wilderness of directory listings, third-wave certifications, and wondering if your burnout is diagnosable. First? Take a breath. You’re not wandering this path alone.
In a recent episode, Kelly and Miranda zoom out to tackle some big questions therapists are wrestling with right now: Are there really enough clients out there? Is therapy still in demand? Are online directories dead? Should you get that certification, or are you enough?
Miranda and Kelly don’t just offer platitudes: they lay out data, mindset shifts, and practical steps for navigating private practice in these wild and wonderful times. Let’s dig in and see what lessons (and a few myth-bustings!) you can take straight to your own business.
Yes, People Are Looking for Therapy (With Data to Prove It!)
If you’re anxious that no one is looking for therapy anymore, you’re not crazy, you’re human, and you’re not alone. But is it true? Nope! As Miranda assures us, “I haven’t found a situation as of yet for any person where it’s, where that’s the issue that people just are not looking for therapy even today. And we’re recording this on July 10th of 2025. There are on a monthly basis, according to Google, 27,100 searches per month to find a therapist.”
Let that number sink in. Demand for mental health care is not only alive, it’s at a historic high. Way back in 2003, there were about 15,000 searches per month; now it’s nearly double. Put simply: “This is actually one of the highest times in history of the amount of people who are looking to find a therapist.”
Takeaway for New & Growing Practices
If your current referral sources (like Psychology Today) aren’t working, don’t assume it’s low demand. The problem may be positioning, differentiation, or visibility, not market saturation.
There’s more demand for therapy than there are therapists to meet it.
As Kelly puts it: “Our labor is deeply wanted and it’s deeply needed, and it isn’t something that can be replicated. In my opinion, if we’re doing it well, it’s irreplaceable.”
But… the Options Have Changed! Why Differentiation Matters More Than Ever
While the search volume is sky-high, today’s therapy seekers have more choices than ever before: in-person, telehealth, coaching, niche specialties, and mega-platforms. “There’s more people vying for attention of these people looking for therapy,” notes Kelly. “It’s why now more than ever, we need to differentiate and be really clear about what good therapy is.”
Clients are getting savvier, too. Google’s not just filled with ‘therapist near me’ searches anymore. Miranda drops this jaw-dropper: “The amount of people who are searching for therapists near me … 27,100. And the amount of people who are looking for EMDR therapists near me is 27,100. So it is equal now.” Specialized searches for EMDR, trauma, LGBT care, insomnia, ‘throuples’ - are climbing fast.
Takeaway for New & Growing Practices
You don’t have to be everything to everyone. But you do need to communicate what makes you different.
Visibility isn’t just about showing up. It’s about showing who you are and how you help.
Clients today want specifics: your specialty, your approach, your story.
Tip
Stop hiding behind ‘I help everyone with everything’. The narrower your visible specialty (even if you see a range of clients), the stronger your practice will grow.
Should You Spend Thousands on That Next Certification?
Raise your hand if you’ve ever thought, “If I just get certified in [hot new modality], THEN I’ll feel competent/confident/fill my caseload.” (Me too!)
Certification FOMO is real. Kelly confesses, “I struggled. I was like, should I go through the certification? Why is this certified? Who created this? … It’s bred into me to be like, oh, I’ve done level one, I’ve done level two. I should go. Do you know?” Yet, she found that often, the drive for more credentials is about anxiety, not clinical impact.
Miranda clarifies: “Let’s talk about the nuance of training versus certification… After the first couple of years, you’re supposed to be going and getting trained every year. Are you being intentional with those training hours based on the kind of clients you’re seeing? Are you tracking your outcomes so you kind of know where you’re in flow and where you have sticky points? … It doesn’t mean you have to have some ultra specific niche, y’all, but are you being focused enough in your work?”
Takeaway for Therapists
Ongoing learning is essential, but more certifications aren’t always better. Get training that’s relevant to the real needs of your actual clients.
Examine your motivation: Are you seeking certification to bolster your skills… or soothe self-doubt?
You are already enough for so many clients. Build on your strengths, don’t chase credentials from a place of scarcity.
Tip
Before you drop thousands on another badge, ask: “Will this actually transform the clinical outcomes for my clients or am I trying to ease my insecurity?” Choose accordingly.
Own Your Clinical Mastery (and Get Paid Accordingly)
Let’s get real about value. The insurance hamster wheel and Big Tech therapy platforms can tempt you, especially if building a caseload feels like wading through molasses. But as Miranda highlights, many therapists inadvertently compete with themselves by joining every insurance panel or funneling labor through platforms where pay, control, and outcomes may fall short.
“People say, well, the reason I have to take insurance is because every person who calls me needs to use their insurance. … Well, if you’re on 11 panels, every single person that calls you is, you’re already paneled with them. So you can’t find a private pay client because you are paneled with everyone that could be a private pay client until you start to say no to particular insurance contracts.”
Kelly adds a client perspective: “I thought I would like using my insurance, but I was like… I’d rather pay cash for three minutes. So I was like, yeah, I thought I would like using my insurance, but I was like, I don’t know.”
Demand for private pay therapy isn't gone, it's evolving. There are plenty of clients out there seeking good therapy, not just the cheapest, fastest appointment. Private practice done well allows you to serve from abundance, not exhaustion.
Takeaway for Therapists
You are the healer. The whole system needs your labor.
Track your outcomes. Communicate your unique value. Position yourself as the specialist you are.
Saying no to incongruent insurance contracts or low-value labor isn’t selfish; it’s sustainable.
The best way to serve clients long term is to show up present, rested, and well-compensated.
The Heart of the Matter: Your Work Is Deeply Needed (and Irreplaceable)
At the core, Miranda and Kelly want you to remember why you started down this path in the first place. “What you do is so freaking important. And could you, like, come back to that, like, deep truth? That deep truth that had nothing to do with feeling burnt out, overwhelmed… That deep truth was, like, I have medicine within me. I meant to be a healer.”
This is the soul of private practice: your attunement, your presence, your wisdom. No app, algorithm, or platform can replace that. As Kelly puts it, “We need to get clearer about ourselves so that we’re differentiated. We’re not even playing in the same waters as we say the blue ocean, you know…”
Private practice is still, as she says, “one of the best ways that we can show up with our healing skills.”
Takeaway
The landscape changes, but the need for skilled, attuned therapy never does.
Clarity and differentiation aren’t just business hacks; they’re fidelity to your gifts.
Your seat at the table is waiting (even if you have to ask a billion-dollar tech company to scoot aside).
Your Next Steps: Build with Intention, Not Fear
Miranda and Kelly wrap up with this encouragement: “People are looking for therapists. People do need the kind of work that you do. And it’s actually the demand is more than ever. So take heart and know that there’s a place for you here at the table.”
If you’re feeling daunted or unsure where to start, know this: you don’t have to DIY everything. There are roadmaps, mentors, and like-minded colleagues who’ve walked this winding path and want to help.
Practical Next Steps:
Revisit your website, directory listings, and social feeds. Do they reflect what truly sets you apart?
Audit your training and CE schedule: Is it making you a better clinician, or just a busier one?
Get clear on your ideal client, outcomes, and the kind of practice you want (and deserve!) to grow.
Feel overwhelmed? Find support. Business School for Therapists is a step-by-step program that’s helped thousands of counselors grow full, profitable, sustainable practices, without sacrificing their souls (or their weekends).
Tell Us:
What lesson from this episode will you carry forward? Drop a comment, share with a friend, or just take that first brave step!
