Therapist Mystery of the Week: Employer Drama or My Expectations
Every clinician I know has had this moment: you’re sipping coffee between sessions, staring at your schedule, and wondering — is this place the problem, or am I expecting too much? In our line of work, it’s not always easy to tell. The emotional weight of client care can blur the lines between a workplace that’s genuinely unhealthy and one that’s simply the reality of outpatient mental health work in Alaska. So, how do you figure it out? Let’s walk through it.
First, the Basics
A solid outpatient practice should give you the tools to actually do your job well. That means you’re not constantly fighting the systems — the scheduling works, the billing is handled, the policies make sense, and you’re not left alone to figure out a sticky ethical situation. You should know exactly how you’re paid, what’s expected of you, and how decisions are made. And it’s not just about systems. In a healthy setting, leadership cares enough to make changes when something’s not working. They actually listen — not in a “we’ll get back to you” kind of way, but in a “let’s fix this” kind of way. Colleagues share resources instead of guarding them. Professional growth isn’t just a bullet point in the employee handbook — it’s happening in real time through supervision, mentorship, and opportunities to stretch your skills. If those basics are missing, you’ve probably got a workplace problem. If they’re there, but you’re still feeling off, then we might be looking at an expectations issue.
The Reality of Outpatient Work
Even in the best-run practices, there are parts of the job that just… are. Clients cancel. Paperwork stacks up. Some weeks your sessions feel electric; other weeks, you leave wondering if you made any difference at all. Those aren’t signs of a bad workplace — they’re the rhythm of outpatient care. And sometimes, especially early on, our frustration isn’t with our employer — it’s with the fact that this work doesn’t always match the mental picture we had when we started.
Red Flags That Really Do Mean Trouble
On the flip side, there are signs you shouldn’t ignore. If you’re pressured to work outside your scope, or see clients in unsafe conditions — that’s not a “tweak your expectations” moment, that’s a “this place is not dialed in” moment. Same goes for pay that’s opaque or constantly shifting, a culture that thrives on blame, or leadership that shuts down questions. Those are not quirks of the job — those are reasons to start updating your résumé.
The Alaska Factor
Here in Alaska, good outpatient practices know the work is demanding, so they build flexibility into the structure. They give you autonomy to shape your schedule — because they trust you to manage your time and your caseload. They recognize that sustainable workloads matter more than squeezing in one more client. They make room for the reality that life here includes fishing trips, snow days, and the occasional family member from the lower 48 visit.
When you’ve got a workplace like that, the job feels more like a partnership than a grind.
The Bottom Line
Before you decide to jump ship, ask yourself: Are the essentials here — support, ethics, fair pay, and a healthy culture? Am I frustrated because of this particular employer, or because outpatient work has inherent challenges? If it’s the latter, do I have strategies to handle those challenges, or am I expecting them to disappear? Finding a place where your expectations match reality is worth the effort. And in the right Alaska counseling job, you can have both — meaningful work and a lifestyle that gives you space to breathe.
If you’re looking for that balance, you might find it in our current openings.