Beyond the Clinical: A Look at Our Therapists In and Out of Session: Bailey

Sometimes it can feel like a mystery when searching for a therapist.

You read and scroll all of the websites, profiles, and clinical information, but you don’t usually get to hear from the therapist in their own words.

Bright Light Counseling Center decided to lift the veil and introduce our therapists, in their own words. Learn more about them both personally and professionally.

This month we are interviewing Bailey Patterson. Bailey is a counselor in our Austin, TX office. She provides therapy in person as well as online to residents of Texas.

BLCC: What do you like to do in your free time/for fun?

Bailey: I am a bit of a homebody so I like to spend time at my place with my fur babies! They really help me to feel restored and they are incredibly attention needy so there’s plenty of treats, cuddles, and playtime to be had. I also like to read a good book, take care of my plants, cook something yummy, make a craft, and watch TV or YouTube while I’m home. If I go out, it’s usually to a spot with some local food, a live music venue for my favorite artists and local bands, or a thrift store to see what good finds there are. 

BLCC: Are you currently binge watching any shows?

Bailey: I am honestly on the lookout for another show. I wish seasons were longer like they used to be on cable TV because the newer shows with 6-10 episodes per season and sometimes years between seasons seem so short and fast to me. More than anything, I watch A LOT of Youtube, especially on my TV, guilty pleasure! I especially like Smosh and will watch pretty much anything on their channels or featuring the cast. 

BLCC: What music is on your playlist?

Bailey: I like to support LGBTQIA+ artists like Rainbow Kitten Surprise, The Beaches, King Princess, Boygenius, Muna, Tash Sultana, Billie Eilish, Fightmaster, The Japanese House, The Aces, Xana, Tracy Chapman, Devon Again, Clairo, and PVRIS.

I also like indie type artists and oldies like Hozier, Flipturn, Fleetwood Mac, Magdalena Bay, Rachel Chinouriri, Hayley Williams, Eagles, The Hacky Turtles, The Beach Boys, Del Water Gap, Backseat Lovers, and Austin’s own Shakey Graves!

BLCC: Are you currently reading any books?

Bailey: I typically have a nonfiction audiobook and at least one fictional book in text going at the same time. Right now, I’m listening to The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt which is a really interesting exploration of the massive shift to a technological childhood and the emerging impacts it has had on Gen Z.

I am also reading a paperback copy of Fourth Wing (I feel late to the party tbh) and She Who Became The Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan on my kindle. I admittedly read much faster on my kindle, it’s so much lighter to hold and pack, or even fit in my pocket when I take my dog to the park. 

If I really want to calm my mind and turn down the noise, I try to be electronic-free

BLCC: What is your favorite dish to eat?

Bailey: I love pretty much any pasta dish there is, especially with a tomato based sauce and cheese involved! Being from a rural area outside of San Antonio, I also LOVE classic San Antonio style Tex-Mex cheese enchiladas with a crispy taco on the side! I’m still struggling to find that perfect kind of enchilada gravy and homemade tortilla I know and love in the Austin area (open to recommendations!). 

BLCC: Where is one place you would like to travel to and why?

Bailey: I have never left the country before so there’s manyyy places I would like to travel to. I really want to go to the kinds of beaches you see on reality TV with really clear water and beautiful plants everywhere. I would like to travel to Aruba, Fiji, or somewhere tropical coastal. I also want to go to the little Greek islands that Mamma Mia was filmed at and to see the northern lights! 

BLCC: What helps you to relax and calm your mind??

Bailey: If I’m trying to relax and just lay on the couch, I love to watch reality TV or an old comfort movie. If I really want to calm my mind and turn down the noise, I try to be electronic-free and focus on spending time with my pets, cleaning and resetting my space, or curling up with a good book. 

BLCC: What is your ideal way to spend a day off?

Bailey: My days off seem to be either go-go-go or stay at home all day long, there’s really no in between. On a busy day off, I love to get a good coffee, hit up a thrift store or some other fun locally owned business, spend some time with friends, and catch some live music if I can. On a homebody day off, I like to craft and make something new for my place with a thrifted treasure. 

BLCC: What is your favorite place?

Bailey: I moved here from Corpus Christi after grad school and I still really love the beach out there as one of my favorite places in Texas.  Even living in Austin now, I still think it’s worth the drive to Padre Island when I can for some sun, reading, and playing catch with my dog. 

BLCC: What was your first job?

Bailey: My first official job was in high school as a host at Chili’s, during the peak era of the “hi, welcome to chili’s” meme, so I avoided that phrase as much as possible. Honestly, not a bad gig for a teenager because I got free food every shift and half off everything when not working so I pretty much ate there nonstop. I still love the triple dipper but I am begging the Chili’s lords to stop inflating the price. :(

BLCC: What made you choose counseling as a career?

Bailey: After finishing my bachelor’s degree in 2020, I found myself working desk jobs on college campuses and craving more than looking at a screen all day. Between my personal desires and the drastic changes that were happening in the world, I began exploring other options and counseling seemed to be the perfect calling the more I considered it. I thought since I hadn’t studied or worked in psychology that it wouldn’t be possible, but I was able to get into an amazing grad school program and connect with some inspiring mentors to help me get here today.

After being in this career for a while, I wouldn’t trade it for any other and I am grateful for the non-linear journey I had to get here. I appreciate the sense of purpose, connection, and never-ending growth that counseling has provided for me. 

I think it’s most important to just connect human to human first

BLCC: What do you enjoy most about being a therapist?

Bailey: I most enjoy the moments when we get to celebrate something unexpected together. Sometimes a breakthrough comes out of nowhere outside of session or from an activity that feels cringe or silly at first and leads to something impactful. The unexpected moments of progress are always the sweetest to me and give a good burst of motivation for us both to keep moving forward. 

BLCC: What do you think makes you stand out as a therapist?

Bailey: I like to keep therapy real and unique to each client. I try not to use too much therapy-speak or textbook vocabulary and theories unless I’m really exploring them with the client together.

I think it’s most important to just connect human to human first and create a safe space for the client to take away what they need from it. I also really want to know if you don’t like something I do! It’s important that we maximize the time for your benefits so if you’re not vibing with an activity or exploring a certain topic, it won’t hurt my feelings in any special way if you speak up and shift directions; I would prefer you do!

The session is for YOU and YOUR needs and goals. 

BLCC: What is your specialty or niche? And why?

Bailey: My specialty population is working with the LGBTQIA+ community. I identify as a queer person myself and know just how valuable a safe and affirming space can be.

I enjoy working with clients who are curious about their identity, going through the process of coming out, or working through related conflicts in their personal lives and the larger world as a whole.

In my experience, the main issues that lead LGBTQIA+ clients to therapy typically aren’t even related to their identity, but it can be much easier to open up to a therapist who also understands what it’s like to walk the world as a queer person.

I also work with parents, partners, or other loved ones of the community who are struggling with the transition of someone in their life coming out; providing a nonjudgmental listening ear and a voice of understanding and empathy.  

I enjoy the never-ending push to learn and grow for myself and the fact that when I get home I still have the energy to even do so.

BLCC: What would you want someone who has never been to therapy to know about therapy?

Bailey: Therapy is simply not what you see in the movies or TV shows. I think most therapists find themselves rolling their eyes or cringing at scenes involving therapists as they almost always involve misrepresentation in one way or another. Therapy is not just about the bad times and the hard thoughts and feelings, it’s about celebrating the good and reinforcing progress too!

It’s also much more collaborative than you may think and ultimately YOU are the expert in the room on your life! Everything we have learned and studied can help, but you as the client are the one to do the majority of the hard work and to come to your own answers. We are ready to do the hard work if you are! :)

BLCC: What is rewarding about working with your clients?

Bailey: I find it most rewarding to see long-term progress. Some goals are more short term while others may be lifelong progress the client is trying to achieve. I enjoy when we can make a breakthrough on an issue that is been going on for many years.

It’s rewarding to see new habits truly come to fruition and become second nature. Seeing a client go through a full transformation after months of hard work and reach a point when they decide they no longer need therapy is most rewarding. With each individual client, I hope to actually work myself out of a job entirely.

BLCC: What have you felt most challenged by as a therapist?

Bailey: Being a therapist has really challenged me to slowww downnn both in and out of session. I consider myself to be a grade A yapper and quite a bit more extraverted than one might expect from a therapist, but my professional growth has really taught me to slow down and take in the moment and words of others to a much deeper level.

In sessions, I have learned how to turn on a different level of listening and reflection than I was used to before my therapist journey. It has also been a healthy challenge to practice turning this kind of listening back off when I am out of session and in my personal life because that is just too unsustainable fulltime. 

BLCC: What makes being a therapist worthwhile?

Bailey: Being a therapist is worthwhile for all the growth I see in clients, but also myself.

After working in another career field for many years with a demanding office environment, being a therapist has afforded much more personal growth and agency for myself both in and out of the office. I enjoy the never-ending push to learn and grow for myself and the fact that when I get home I still have the energy to even do so.

This career fills me with so much passion and purpose that I don’t think I could find elsewhere while still pouring energy into other parts of my life.

BLCC: How have current events impacted how you approach therapy?

Bailey: My approach to therapy includes never debating if a thought or fear is rational and this especially applies to thoughts and fears about current events. There is so much going on in this strange timeline we have found ourselves in and it can be beyond overwhelming, just piling on to our own personal issues in life. I will never downplay anxiety about the state of society, especially for the marginalized clients I work with. I also won’t even deny my own anxiety about many of these topics. But hopefully, together, we can learn how to turn the volume down a bit on these thoughts and fears so it’s a little easier to focus on issues that are more within our immediate control. 

BLCC: How do you feel about technology and its impact on therapy?

Bailey: I think technology is not inherently good or bad for therapy, but can depend on how we use it. There is a lot of helpfulness to be had such as apps that offer guided coping strategies and the ability to do sessions from home, but there can also be not so helpful aspects like the spread of misinformation or numbing our unwanted feelings with an endless social media scroll.

Ultimately, it is up to each client and how they want technology to interact in their life and impact their goals for therapy so I am open to utilizing it as an effective tool, or exploring how to decrease its presence in your life altogether.

BLCC: What is one common misconception about therapy that you would change, if you could? Why?

Bailey: I think a common misconception about therapy is that it’s only for clients who are deeply suffering and have a severe diagnosis. Therapy can be for everyone and you don’t have to reach “rock bottom” to deserve additional support. If you have even a spark of desire for anything at all to be different in your life, therapy can be for you. It is about growth and action and working towards the values that matter most to you in life.

To learn more about Bailey, click here.

To schedule an appointment, reach out today.