Therapist Confidence: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome, Finding Your Niche, and Building a Private Practice with Carly Costello- Part 1
What does it take to move through imposter syndrome, trust yourself as an EMDR therapist, and build a private practice that reflects your strengths?
In this episode, we sit down with Carly Costello, EMDR consultant, private practice owner , and the therapist behind EMDR with Carly. Carly shares how she went from using Instagram to attract local therapy clients to building an EMDR consultation business and receiving EMDRIA’s 2025 Social Media Influencer Award.
We have an honest conversation about taking risks, showing your face on social media, finding your clinical niche, and building confidence as a newer therapist. Carly also explains why many clinicians experience a difficult “hump” after EMDR basic training and how quality consultation and mentorship can help them move through self-doubt and begin trusting the EMDR process.
In this episode, we discuss:
Overcoming imposter syndrome as a new therapist
Building confidence after EMDR training
Finding your niche as a mental health therapist
Starting and growing a therapy private practice
Using Instagram to connect with clients and consultees
Becoming an EMDR-certified therapist and consultant
Taking calculated risks in business
Recognizing your strengths and outsourcing your weaknesses
Managing big ideas, ADHD, and the less-exciting “micro tasks”
Letting go of the belief that you must specialize in everything
If you’re a new therapist, EMDR clinician, consultant-in-training, or private practice owner who feels overwhelmed, behind, or unsure of your next step, this conversation will remind you that you don’t need to have everything figured out before you begin.
Sometimes building confidence looks like doing it scared, posting it, and moving forward anyway.
We created The Gritty Therapist to help other mental health therapists like us gain clinical confidence, crush imposter syndrome and connect within. If that's you, share the show, subscribe and give us a review!
Now go get your Gritty on!
Connect with us! Check out our freebies and our NEW Grit School:
Therapist AF: Grit School for the Real World, practical skills, nervous system grounding, and the reps grad school skipped
The Gritty Therapist freebies, tools, and support: thegrittytherapist.com
The Cord Where Science Meets Connection attachment/trauma-focused therapy.
Follow along on Instagram @grittytherapist and go get your gritty on.
THE GRITTY THERAPIST SHOP
More Resources Made For Therapists
A simple, in-the-moment reset for therapists when imposter syndrome shows up.
This free ACT-based tool guides you through awareness, connection, and grounded action so you can interrupt the spiral and return to presence in session.