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Content Warning: This episode of Therapists Unchained features a deeply honest and vulnerable conversation regarding severe depression, systemic burnout, and suicidal ideation among mental health professionals.

In this episode of Therapists Unchained, host Sivie Suckerman sits down with Anna Steele, LCSW, a licensed clinical social worker who runs a solo private practice in Vail, Arizona. Anna shares her courageous professional evolution from the grinding gears of public mental health to true clinical autonomy, while laying bare the profound personal cost of an industry that frequently denies the humanity of its healers. They speak about navigating profound struggles while working under high-stress institutional systems. She and host Sivie Suckerman discuss the unique challenges, isolation, and barriers that clinicians face when seeking support for their own mental health.

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, please know you are not alone and help is available:

National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988 (available 24/7, free, and confidential).
Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor.
Local Resources: Reach out to your local crisis clinic or emergency services.

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Anna Steele, LCSW

I have worked as a mental health professional since 2000. In 2009 I earned my Master’s of Social Work (MSW) from Arizona State University (ASU), and I have worked as a therapist ever since. I have worked as a therapist in public mental health in several settings. These have included residential treatment, community crisis services, and juvenile detention. While working in public mental health I became trained in Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR).

In 2016 I decided to go into private practice, and I opened Vail Counseling PLLC. The experience in public mental health and my training in EMDR was very valuable in private practice. At the same time I started working with people who wanted even deeper answers and healing than traditional psychotherapies and even EMDR could provide.

In 2021 I was introduced to Intensive Short Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP). This treatment intervention taught me how to fully experience all emotions in order to find the deep changing answers that my clients and I were looking for. While learning about ISTDP I also realized that attachment theory helps provide deep healing answers, and so I have taken the time to study and thoroughly understand attachment.

In 2024 I took an intensive training on couples therapy called PACT (Psychobiological Approach to Couple Therapy). PACT has helped richen my understanding of attachment. It has also taught me skills that help deepen relationships and improve attachment.

A principle that I have lived and worked by since the beginning of my career is to be willing to do anything I ask a client to do. As I have learned different therapies I have also done them myself. I support those I work with by being trained and experienced in various skills of psychotherapy, and by being able to understand through my own personal experience. If you are searching for answers that will create meaningful change in your life I look forward to the opportunity to use my experience and training to support you in this journey.

Vail Counseling

This episode was produced and edited by Sivie Suckerman, MA, LMHC, ACS

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This podcast episode of Therapists Unchained, hosted by Sivie Suckerman, features MediSprout founders Dr. Samant Virk and Ben Putland, who discuss their mission to provide an ethical technology alternative for mental health clinicians. Unlike venture-backed platforms that prioritize investor returns, their Electronic Health Record (EHR) system focuses on clinical integrity and data sovereignty. The founders explain how they self-fund their operations to avoid the predatory practices often seen in the industry, such as monetizing patient data or sudden price hikes. To ensure the software serves providers first, they established an independent clinical integrity board with veto power over features affecting patient care. Their long-term strategy includes building a nonprofit management services organization and an independent clearinghouse to protect the autonomy of private practices. Ultimately, the conversation highlights a shift toward transparent, practitioner-led infrastructure designed to reclaim power from large healthcare conglomerates.

MediSprout

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Dr. Samant Virk is Founder & CEO of MediSprout, a company focused on connecting doctors with their patients through innovative technology solutions. He is also a physician having practiced clinical medicine for almost 15 years, with a specialization in Neurology and Interventional Spine. Virk founded MediSprout' to help practitioners better connect with patients using its virtual video product, V2MD. Samant received his medical degree from St. George's University School of Medicine and lives in Rye, New York.

Ben Putland, Founder, Chief Operating Officer has spent 26 years growing businesses and building digital work that breaks new ground. He's helped global tech and entertainment brands — including Google, Meta, Spotify, Lucasfilm, and Disney — pull off genuine industry firsts. For Google, he led the team behind Google Outside, one of the first campaigns to turn live search data into out-of-home advertising that adapted to your location, the time of day, and what you were likely looking for. For Disney, he helped create the augmented-reality "Shadows" experience, which became the second most-shared ad of 2015 and drew more than 300 million views. Work like this has earned his teams some of the most prestigious awards in advertising. Originally from Cambridge in the UK, Benhas lived in five countries and has called New York home for the past twelve years. His 2019 exit came as COO of Grand Visual and managing director of its ad-tech spin-off QDOT, both acquired by Talon Outdoor that year. Since then he's served as COO of MediSprout, a healthcare innovation company, where he's tackling some of the sector's deepest problems with one goal in mind: making health equity a reality.

This episode was produced and edited by Sivie Suckerman, MA, LMHC, ACS

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This podcast episode of Therapists Unchained, hosted by Sivie Suckerman, features Meg Curtin Rey-Bear, MA, LPCC, LMHC, NCC, a veteran therapist and advocate from Eastern Washington. As the finance task force chair and co-creator of the insurance task force for the Washington Mental Health Counselors Association (WAMCA), Meg shares her experiences navigating and fighting to reform the mental health insurance system. Meg and Sivie speak about grassroots advocacy and how it has successfully shifted policy in recent years and that billing insurance remains a vital way to keep quality mental health care accessible to the community.

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Meg Curtin Rey-Bear, MA, LPCC, LMHC, NCC

As a therapist with over 23 years of experience, Meg has extensive training and practice in the areas of complex trauma, PTSD, anxiety, depression, and family dynamics. In her current practice Meg’s works as a family therapist and specializes in working with parents experiencing high-tension family dynamics and with parents struggling to connect with their children. Meg also works with estranged parents of adult children, helping concerned family members reduce tension and foster healthy connections that motivate loved ones to seek the help and support they need.

In addition to her work with families and parents, Meg is a Certified Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia provider (CBTi), offering clinical support to clients struggling with sleep and insomnia issues and. CBTi is a highly effective, structured, and evidence-based approach to combating the frustrating symptoms of insomnia. For those suffering from disrupted sleep, CBT-I has been found to be a more effective treatment than medication.

Meg is a Certified EMDR therapists and National Board Certified Counselor (NCC) and State Approved Supervisor. She offers clinical supervision and consultation for new therapists as well as those seeking ongoing support and consultation while they practice independently. She has over 15 years of experience working with interns and new therapists.

Wellness Therapies Spokane

WMHCA

This episode was produced and edited by Sivie Suckerman, MA, LMHC, ACS