Kristin Sage With Sage Counseling and Consulting Ltd

Intro: [00:00:03] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Richmond, Virginia. It’s time for Richmond Business Radio. Now here’s your.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:13] Host. Lee Kantor here, another episode of Richmond Business Radio, and this is going to be a good one. Today on the show we have Kristen Sage with Sage Counseling and Consulting. Welcome.

Kristin Sage: [00:00:26] Thank you.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:28] I am so excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us a little bit about Sage Counseling and Consulting. How you serving folks?

Kristin Sage: [00:00:34] Sure. Sage Counseling and Consulting is a small private mental health practice in North Chesterfield, Virginia, and we specialize in serving families, young children, children as young as three and up. We see a lot of women and men, and we also see a lot of couples. So we really focus on the marriage and family aspect. Um, that’s my perspective. I’m a licensed marriage and family therapist and a licensed professional counselor. So again, just focusing on how the family and the community can impact the individual and then help the families and the children that we serve.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:11] So how are you delineating the difference between counseling and consulting?

Kristin Sage: [00:01:17] I think counseling is more sessions to help people achieve their goals, and consulting is more like, maybe you just have a problem that you want to fix, like a one time thing.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:28] So how do people initially come to you? What do they have a problem they’re trying to fix, or is it something more systemic?

Kristin Sage: [00:01:35] I would say there’s definitely some problems that they have. Usually it’s more than one.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:41] So, like, what’s an example?

Kristin Sage: [00:01:43] Um, we have a lot of people, I would say a lot of mental health issues, but then also relationship issues, a lot of couples, we see a mother and daughters, often different family dynamics. So we see people from a variety of backgrounds and just different issues.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:03] Now, if they’re not going to counseling, how are they solving these issues in their life or are they just not? Are they ignoring it? Or like lack of awareness, like like if they’re not, if you’re not the solution, what are they doing to try to solve this pain?

Kristin Sage: [00:02:17] I do feel like there’s a lot of avoidance and a lot of the couples we see, you know, things have been going on for some time that are not being addressed and they just don’t know what to do. So they come to us.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:29] So what are some symptoms that people are having that maybe they’re dismissing as, oh, this is just life, and life is hard and this is just how it is. Like, what are some symptoms that people maybe would benefit if they came to see somebody like you?

Kristin Sage: [00:02:42] I do feel like people are very stressed right now, just in general, they’re unhappy with what they’re doing, just like as individuals. And there’s a lot of pressure to be a certain way or do a certain thing. Again, maybe they have some mental health issues just on their own. And then if you have that in like a couple and both people are experiencing that, that brings like a lot to the table to try to solve. And sometimes people are fighting a lot or they’re just like going off on their own and they’re not addressing the problem. And there’s like so much going on, but they don’t know what’s wrong. So they’ll come to me and they’re like, well, I’m unhappy, but I don’t know why or I can’t get along with this person, but I don’t know why or I don’t know how to solve the problem. So they come to us to kind of figure that out, and we try to help them with strategies that can help them have good relationships with others, but also have strategies to help them feel better, I would say happier and more calmer.

Lee Kantor: [00:03:39] Now, what’s your backstory? How’d you get involved in this line of work?

Kristin Sage: [00:03:43] Um, I feel like I know a lot of people with mental health issues. I know there’s a lot of mental health issues in my family as well as a lot of families. So it’s just something I want to help people with. And I feel like kids especially, they don’t really have a voice. So I try to help them, you know, deal with issues on their own and then help them communicate that to their parents so that they have better, a better life. And hopefully things can get solved at home.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:10] Were you always self employed or did you work somewhere first and decide to then go out on your own?

Kristin Sage: [00:04:17] Um, I’ve.

Kristin Sage: [00:04:17] Done contracting for a while. I worked in nonprofit, for profit, um, like community agencies, things like that. Um, so I just wanted to do something on my own. Um, and I did that. And then I think it was like a couple years ago, I decided to, um, start, um, having some residents and counseling, um, under myself. So I have one resident in counseling, so that’s LPC track. And then I have another resident in marriage and family therapy, which is, um, like my license.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:48] So what was that like going out on your own like that?

Kristin Sage: [00:04:52] Was a little scary, but there is a need. So you just kind of like try to plan. And so like there’s some overlap between jobs, you know, trying to accrue your caseload.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:01] So how do you go out to the market to even find a client. Like it’s not like a, um, you know, like a hair salon or I would I would imagine this is a lot of word of mouth, like, like how do you even begin to open a practice like this seems very daunting.

Kristin Sage: [00:05:19] Yeah. So, I mean, you’re a credentialed with insurance companies and they, um, have like a list of providers. So if you’re, you know, having an issue and you want to see someone, you can contact your insurance company and they’ll say, oh, here’s a list of people in your area so they will contact you that way. We do have a lot of referrals from word of mouth. Um, and then I don’t know if you’re familiar with Psychology Today. It’s a website, and a lot of people just look people up online and there’s like a whole list of providers and you kind of like, read a bio and just say, oh, does this, you know, match what I’m looking for? I think like that personality would match with my personality. And then you have some sessions and see if it works for you.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:58] Now what some signals for a person who’s never done this before and you’re, you know, you’re going and you’re trying a new counselor, what is some kind of signs that you’ve got a good one or this is good, this has a good chance of working because I would imagine that, you know, getting that fit right is super important in the outcome.

Kristin Sage: [00:06:19] Um, I feel like that’s an individual choice, and I feel like you just have to feel comfortable and feel like. Does this personality and this person match? You know, me and my person and my personality. People can be great people, but they just might not fit. So I think if you’re if you’re like, oh, I like this person, I think they are a good fit, go with it. If initially, I mean, I would just ask people give a couple of sessions because usually the first session is just more of an assessment. But I would just say, like, if you’re not getting a good feeling, you’re not getting a good vibe. You’re just like, it just doesn’t feel right, then that person might not be for you. And that’s okay. And the counselors understand that. So don’t worry about hurting people’s feelings. It’s okay to find another counselor.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:07] Is there any kind of amount of time that goes by without seeing improvement? That would be kind of like, hey, this may not be working, or is that I know that’s a case by case, but like, is it like if years went by and you don’t feel better or you’re in the same place or you’re making the same mistakes, is that kind of a sign that it’s not working? Or like, how do you kind of gauge from a timing standpoint if it’s a good fit?

Kristin Sage: [00:07:36] I feel like you said. You said for a time, like looking at kind of like a timeline, right?

Lee Kantor: [00:07:41] Like, I know, like I go in there and I have an issue and then I know, like at the end of the session, I’m not it’s not going to be better. It’s not like I’m hungry and I go to Chipotle and now I’m not hungry anymore. Like I understand there’s more to it than that, but how how much time is reasonable to expect some. Change.

Kristin Sage: [00:08:03] So I think that’s a hard question to answer because everyone is so different. I would say. It’s like, what are you trying to achieve? Like what is your goal? And you have to the client has to put in the work like counselors can’t like fix the problem for someone. Um, but I think it’s like asking yourself, am I ready to make changes? If you’re not, that’s okay. But counseling might not be for you at that time, so you would just have to think like, am I open? Okay, well, this might be my problem. So you’ll create goals with your therapist, and every time you meet, you’re working on those goals. You can come and talk about whatever you want. Um, but you’re formulating those goals, and you always come back to them or you adjust them as needed. Um, so some people say they feel better, like right away after a few sessions, um, if they keep coming. Some people, it does take years because some people have like a lot of trauma. We do see a lot of people with trauma and well, everyone has trauma. But there’s different types of trauma. There’s different layers of trauma. So it depends, you know, what you’re working on in session and how you’re kind of, I think viewing the problem and like what you can realistically do about the problem.

Lee Kantor: [00:09:15] Now coming up in May, you’re putting on, uh, your first annual women’s conference. Can you tell us a little bit about that?

Kristin Sage: [00:09:24] Yes. So our first annual women’s conference is called transformed a Journey of Healing, health, hope and happiness. And it’s May 3rd, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.. So it’s an all day event. Um, so we have a full day of speakers and strategy. Um, so around from like 8 to 9, we’re going to do a breakfast. So breakfast is provided by the hotel and we have a keynote speaker, April Spencer, who is with Nami Central Virginia. Have you heard of Nami before?

Lee Kantor: [00:09:55] No.

Kristin Sage: [00:09:56] Okay. So that’s the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Um, so they have local, state and national levels. Um, but April’s with the central or like local level. Um, so she’s going to speak. She’s going to do our keynote speech, um, and kind of speak about her story and how she came to be involved with Nami, and she’s also going to be doing a session on spirituality. And I feel like that’s a special topic, because a lot of people don’t talk about spirituality and how it kind of can help them. And if if you don’t want to go to that session, that’s okay. Um, so basically I’ll kind of lay out the the day. Um, from 9 to 12 we have sessions every hour. And you’re going to get a choice. You get to go to one out of like four sessions, if that makes sense. Um, and so you’re going to be focusing kind of on yourself in the morning, and you’re going to be going to sessions that interest you. And maybe you want more information about. And the goal for the morning is to really think about different aspects of your life and maybe things you want to change. Or maybe you think things like are going well in this area, like what’s going well and what’s not, and like, what do you want to change? And think about how one of these, um, speakers is going to help you or could help you. And all of our speakers are local business women in the area. So they’re experts in their field, and they have a lot of experience working with other women. So this is going to be like an awesome day to connect with other like minded women, talk to people, women who have there are experts in their field. And then focus on yourself.

Lee Kantor: [00:11:37] Now is there the morning? Is there a chance for me to interact? Am I going to be able to ask questions? Or is this, you know, a lot of education. They’re speaking and I’m listening. And then I move to the next speaker and I’m listening again.

Kristin Sage: [00:11:51] So this isn’t like the speakers aren’t speaking at you. It’s more like they’re going to be talking and it’s going to be more of a group discussion. And we really want it to be interactive. So there’s like some activities. There’s going to be a lot of discussion. So we really want people to share if they feel comfortable because who wants to be talked out for like an hour.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:09] Right. So then I go to sessions in the morning. Is there a lunch? Is there food involved or is this just kind of learning?

Kristin Sage: [00:12:17] Yeah. So in the morning we have breakfast and then we have lunch from like 12 to 1. And then in the afternoon we have some self-care strategies. So the morning is more like group oriented. Um, and the session in the afternoon is also but it’s more like strategy. So we’re going to be having meditation chair yoga. So it’s yoga, but it’s not going to be as like intensive. Um, I don’t know if you’ve heard of Reiki before or acupressure, but those are our afternoon sessions.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:46] And then so I’ll be able to participate in those and, and actually go through some of those, you know, and physically feel them, not just hear about them.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:56] Yeah, I feel like those.

Kristin Sage: [00:12:58] So it’s all interactive. But the afternoon I think it’s, it’s good to have those, um, sessions in the afternoon because, you know, you have lunch, you might get a little tired. So then you can go and you’re going to be wide awake because you’re going to probably be moving a little bit like nothing too crazy, but just moving a little bit.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:13] And then how does how does it end?

Kristin Sage: [00:13:15] So we also have a panel discussion, which I’m really excited about. Um, because May is Mental Health Awareness Month and we’re meeting on May 3rd. Um, we’re having a panel of licensed providers in the area. Um, and these ladies we have I’m going to be on it. My resident and then two other licensed professional counselors are going to be on it, along with a family nurse practitioner. So she’s going to speak more about the overlap of mental health and physical health. But all of the attendees for that day, they’re going to write down questions that they specifically want to have answers to. And we’re going to go over that during the panel discussion from like 1 to 315. And then after that, we’re going to have a little VIP event where attendees can talk to the speakers individually, like ask them more questions and just have some one on one time and maybe, you know, find out if they want to connect with them in the future.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:07] So is this something that a person goes by themselves, or do they bring their friends or they bring their kid? Like, how would you how would you do this?

Lee Kantor: [00:14:16] That’s a.

Kristin Sage: [00:14:17] Good point. Um, so the plan for the day, the plan of the day is for women to really prioritize themselves and think about. Themselves take time for themselves. So there you know, we don’t have any childcare. So but we’re hoping that women will take the day off if they are working. And it’s a Friday. So hopefully the kids will be in school or they will be in daycare and women can just come. Um, so we encourage women to just come by themselves if they want to or come and bring their friends. Um, because we’re hoping women will connect with other women. And I believe, like, if you go anywhere, you just never know who you’re going to talk to, who you’re going to sit by. You can make a new lifelong friend. You can make a new job connection. You just never.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:56] Know.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:57] So if somebody wants to learn more about the event or your practice, is there a website they can go to?

Kristin Sage: [00:15:03] Yes. Um, so my practice is sage Counseling for you. Com so that is our general website. If they want to register for the conference they should go to sage counseling dot ticket spice.com backslash transformed. So that’s where you purchase the tickets. But if you go to our general site you can click on a link there. And it will also take you to the Ticket Spice website. And just to kind of throw it out there, um, we do have some specials going on. We know money is tight for a lot of people, so we do have some sales. Um, if you’re really having financial hardship, we do have some scholarships. So we’re hoping, you know, whoever wants to come is able to come.

Lee Kantor: [00:15:42] Now, if somebody if a business person out there would like to sponsor it, is there still sponsor opportunities or is it too late?

Kristin Sage: [00:15:50] Yes, we are still looking for sponsors. So if they just contact me, um, through the website, that would be great.

Lee Kantor: [00:15:57] And then what type of businesses would be a good sponsor for you?

Kristin Sage: [00:16:00] I would say anything mental, well mental health and overall wellness. So it can be because we’re our we’re touching on um, physical health, mental health, spiritual health and sexual health. Um, so anything related to women’s overall health?

Lee Kantor: [00:16:15] Well, congratulations on all the success and good luck on this event. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you.

Kristin Sage: [00:16:23] Thank you. Um, and is it okay to just kind of tell a little bit about the sponsors that we do have?

Lee Kantor: [00:16:28] Sure.

Kristin Sage: [00:16:29] Okay. So doctor Erica mason is with Sleep Better. Virginia. She’s going to be one of our presenters as well. Um, she’s a sponsor. And then Nicole Formsma, she’s the owner of Rejuvenation Skin Lab. She’s also presenting, and she is a sponsor. Um, and they do a lot of, like, skin rejuvenation and just different rejuvenation for women of all skin types and backgrounds. Um, she did say that they do see a lot of women with some kind of trauma. So that’s a place to go to if you’re feeling really sensitive about your body or about your skin. And then we also have sage tides and that, um, is like kind of like a little mental health retreat if you want to get away and kind of just be somewhere near the beach.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:11] Well, Kristen, thank you again for sharing your story.

Kristin Sage: [00:17:15] Thank you. I really.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:16] Appreciate it.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:17] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Richmond Business Radio.