 Image source: Pixabay Since starting the Food Allergy Counselor Directory and website in 2018, I routinely get emails from counseling and psychology graduate students considering focusing on working with those managing food allergies. (And I always take the time to pay-it-forward and chat with these students!) But I also get frequent emails from therapists who personally and professionally understand IgE-mediated food allergies and want to consider adding food allergy counseling services in their private practices. The top comments and questions I get from these emails are:
A relationship builder at heart, I also take the time to connect with the therapists who reach out to me about food allergy counseling, either informally or more formally through my consultation services. Since I receive common questions in many of these emails, I decided to write a post to share the basic answers. But before I jump into the marketing tips, let's first explore WHY there's a need for food allergy counseling services. Why food allergy counseling services are neededApproximately 32 million Americans manage food allergies. While many may associate food allergies with children, rates of adult allergies, including adult-onset allergies are rising. Per this recent study from Dr. Ruchi Gupta and colleagues, almost 11% of adults manage food allergies, with nearly 19% believing they have a food allergy. No matter the age of the individuals managing food allergies, reports of increased anxiety, and psychosocial and quality of life impacts are common. Here is a brief snapshot of common psychosocial impacts reported:
Additionally, results from this recent survey (of food allergy centers) on the availability of mental healthcare services for those managing food allergies suggests:
These descriptions are brief, but help paint a clear picture of the WHY and NEED for support services from allergy-informed licensed clinical mental healthcare providers. Now, let's move on to HOW to market yourself if you're an allergy-informed therapist and ready to add the food allergy counseling niche to your practice! (If you're a therapist that is not well-versed in food allergies, but would like to learn more about them in order to provide support to patients, stay tuned for posts and podcast episodes on this topic). Marketing Tips for food allergy Counseling Image source: Pixabay Below are three key marketing tips for allergy-informed licensed clinical therapists, psychologists, social workers, and marriage and family therapists looking to expand their practices to include food allergy counseling services. #1: HELP CLIENTS FIND YOU BY LISTING "FOOD ALLERGIES" AS A CLINICAL FOCUS I know this may seem like complete common sense, but I can't tell you how many times I come across a therapist's website with no mention of food allergies as a clinical area of focus, yet, they want to grow within this niche. At the very least, it's important to mention food allergy counseling or support somewhere on your website. Even if you don't want to dedicate a separate page on your site, or even a description of how you can support those managing food allergies, just listing food allergies in your list of clinical focuses helps clients know that this is a service you provide. If you do want to describe your food allergy-focused therapy services, here are some ideas to help you with writing about those services:
Taking this tip one step further, it's also helpful to list food allergies as an area of focus on your practice's social media profiles and pages. Again, seems like common sense, but this one is often overlooked, too. And, if you're good with website management and/or coding, throw some food allergy counseling-related words into the SEO section of your website! #2: THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX & THEN CONNECT WITH ALLERGISTS In almost every online clinical mental healthcare provider forum or group I'm a member of, the discussion of HOW to market therapy services to medical practices gets explored. What marketing materials should we drop off or mail (business cards, flyers, rack cards)? Should we spend money on swag and treats for them in order to help our practice stand out? While these are all personal choices related to how you want to market your practice, here's the advice I will offer on how to market your services to allergists and allergy practices. Before reaching out, think about what you can offer them - what's the benefit of making a connection with you? While many allergists have started assessing their patients' psychosocial impacts, some may not yet have a clear picture of how allergy-informed mental healthcare providers can benefit them, their practices and their patients. Think outside of the box here - beyond just being a patient referral source. Here are some ideas to get you started:
Taking this tip one step further - beyond allergists/allergy practices - think about marketing to and networking with local food allergy support groups and dietitians, and if you work with kids, schools and pediatricians. Offer the same kinds of out-of-the-box service ideas in order to help build strong referral relationships. #3: TO DISCLOSE OR NOT DISCLOSE - THAT IS THE QUESTION This may seem like less of a marketing tip and more of an ethical practice discussion. But, especially if you've added a food allergy focus to your clinical practice because allergies personally impact your life or the life of a loved one, exploring this consideration is important since clients may inquire. In our training to become licensed clinical mental healthcare providers, many of us were taught not to self-disclose personal information to clients, or to do so very purposefully and sparingly. So let's explore this topic more in order to help allergy-informed therapists determine where their boundaries are on allergy-related self-disclosures. Potential Benefits of Self-Disclosing Personal Understanding of Food Allergies:
Considerations When Deciding Whether to Self-Disclose This Information:
Hopefully this piece helped illustrate the need for more allergy-informed clinical mental healthcare providers, and provided a few helpful marketing tips to those who offer food allergy counseling services. I'll end with a few related follow up thoughts....
Thanks for reading, 
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CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT 2019 IS ALMOST OVER?! As this year comes to a close, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the past year and give thanks to the food allergy community. Food Allergy Mental Health Thoughts for 2019....In starting this website over a year and a half ago, my goal was to emphasize the importance of exploring the psychosocial impacts of managing food allergies and allergic conditions. Additionally, I wanted to develop and share psychosocial resources to help those managing food allergies. In that time, it's become even more clear to me that the food allergy community yearns for more focus and guidance on navigating the ups and downs of life with food allergies. I've also seen the allergists and allied healthcare professionals working within the field of allergy and immunology more frequently discussing the psychosocial aspects of food allergy life. So what does all of that mean? Just as we're watching food allergy treatment trends grow and expand, we can hopefully expect to see a shift in food allergy mental health as well. Trends I hope to see continuing to develop within this space:
Giving Thanks to the community....I'm a big believer in paying it forward, whether through actions or words, and truly believe that we don't do enough of this. Additionally, none of us live in a vacuum alone. We're all part of various systems: the family system, the community system, and in this instance, the food allergy system. Therefore, I'd like to give thanks to the food allergy community as I write my final post for 2019.  To The Food Allergy Community: Thank you for....
I look forward to continuing to develop food allergy mental health and counseling resources, and positively impacting the food allergy community in 2020 and beyond!
With gratitude, Tamara Hubbard, MA, LCPC Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor Founder/Creator of the Food Allergy Counselor website  Due to the positive feedback I've received for the Food Allergy Mindset worksheet I shared a few months ago, I've decided to publish additional worksheets that I've created. (I'll be publishing them over time rather than all at once.) These worksheets are useful tools for adults, parents, older kids/teens, and even medical professionals and mental healthcare providers to share with their patients. In addition to publishing them via this Food Allergy Counselor website (in the Worksheet Section), I will also share them via the Food Allergy Counselor Directory & Website Facebook page, as well as my Twitter and Instagram accounts. Stay tuned for additional worksheets and resources that will be shared over time! The IDEAL Method worksheetThe I.D.E.A.L Method, originally created by PhDs Bransford and Stein in 1984, is a problem-solving tool for when fear and anxiety take over. Use the worksheet below to work through your own situations. The benefits of using the I.D.E.A.L Method are:
[Find this and other therapeutic worksheets in the Worksheets Section]   So stay tuned for additional worksheets and resources I'll be sharing over time!
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Follow FAC on Twitter or Instagram, or on Facebook on the Food Allergy Counselor Directory page to get updates on the FAC Directory, blog or resources. And connect with FAC creator Tamara on Twitter or Instagram!
Listen to & subscribe to the Exploring Food Allergy Families podcast!
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