Sandy Stillo, Ph.D., LPC-S, CHST

10/03/2026

“You must purge yourself before finding faults in others.

When you see a mistake in somebody else, try to find if you are making the same mistake.

This is the way to take judgment and to turn it into improvement.

Do not look at others' bodies with envy or with superiority.

All people are born with different constitutions.

Never compare with others.

Each one's capacities are a function of his or her internal strength.

Know your capacities and continually improve upon them.”

~B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Life

09/17/2026

Meet Christina Gipson, MS, LPC-Associate, supervised by Sandy Stillo, PhD, LPC-S!

As a supervisor, I'm very picky about who I work with.

My supervisees need to have more than a servant's heart. They also need to be life-long learners who:

-----> willingly challenge their own beliefs

-----> invest in themselves and their own mental health

-----> are committed to the values of integrity and respect

Christina is one of those people!

Christina Gipson is a phenomenal therapist! She enthusiastically continues to learn and grow so she can be provide the highest quality care to those who need her. Her integrity is unquestionable. She practices what she preaches and models grace, compassion, and self-care. Her clients love her, and I am so proud of the work she does!

Christina's experience and training is trauma focused and client centered. She has advanced training in EMDR and experience treating eating disorders. If you know someone who needs a great therapist, click on the link for Solace Space Counseling.

09/17/2026

"Self respect is not only protecting yourself from other people. It is protecting yourself from the version of you that wants relief without responsibility."

That's powerful.

I can own that.

I have allowed my boundaries to be crossed or violated because it felt too hard to hold them.

I have also made decisions that weren't good for me because I didn't want to do the harder work of resolving the underlying issues.

Relief without responsibility.

Have you done it, too? Can you own that?

If so, you are well on your way to a Better Life.

09/10/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/19hQjUT8LW/?mibextid=wwXIfr

09/10/2026

09/09/2026

Yes, it feels intimidating to be an LPC Associate building your own brand, your own business. Remember, doing anything new is uncomfortable. That doesn't mean you can't do it. If you have someone helping you, it's a whole lot easier!

You can absolutely become a kick-a*s therapist while building a kick-a*s business! Ask me how!

09/01/2026

Did you know that insurance companies can come back to providers up to 10 years after the fact to recoup money they mistakenly paid due to errors on their part? That means if they don’t do their jobs correctly and end up paying a provider erroneously, they have up to 10 years to come back and demand the provider return the money.

Erroneous payments happen more often than you might think. When someone loses their job and thus loses their insurance, the insurance companies don’t always check to ensure that the date of service on the claim was during the period the client was still covered by insurance. The provider wouldn’t know when the insurance would end unless the client knew and told them. So the claim goes through, provider gets paid, then somehow 10 Years later the insurance company discovers their mistake and says, “Oh wait, we shouldn’t have paid that. Give it back.”

Providers aren’t given 10 years to go back and file a corrected claim if we make a mistake. We aren’t given 10 years to file a claim for a session we overlooked when billing back in 2018. We just have to eat those losses. Some insurance companies give you 30 days, others up to 6 months, to make correction or file a claim for services rendered. Certainly not 10 years. If it takes you 10 years to realize you forgot to file a claim or made a mistake on the claim, you’re out of luck. For some reason though, if an insurance company figures out 10 years later that they paid you too much, they can still come back and demand payment.

If nothing changes, more and more providers will stop taking insurance at all. Many already have, and this is one reason why. If you see the injustice here, please consider signing the petition.

Protect healthcare providers from insurance clawbacks

08/20/2026

Here you are, nearing the end of your master's or doctoral program, getting ready to embark on licensure. Congratulations!

Chances are, you have been told many things about what it means to be a "good therapist."

Well, here's my "Spicy Take" on a few things you may have been heard:

--->You do NOT need to have "all your s**t together" to be a fantastic therapist.

-------->You do need to know what it is you are carrying with you into your work with clients.

--->You do NOT need to "leave it all at the door" to be a competent therapist.

-------->You do need to know how to be aware of your own vulnerabilities while also remaining grounded and engaged with clients.

--->You do NOT need to share the same gender, race, culture, spiritual beliefs, philosophies, or life experiences as your clients to be an empathic and compassionate therapist.

-------->You do need to be aware of how your own gender, race, culture, spiritual beliefs, philosophies, and life experiences will be projected onto your relationship with your clients (consciously or not).

You've learned some theories. You've learned some skills. Now it's time to develop yourself as a professional therapist.

That's what LPC Supervision is about, developing your own way of being with clients.

Your knowledge and skills should continue to grow and evolve, but coming to know yourself as a therapist in the context of your work with clients is really what distinguishes LPC supervision from your masters level internship.

*“I’ve got to work through the person that I am, and not through the person of the guru that I admire.”* (Harry Aponte)

08/12/2026

LPC Supervision for Associates who want to be solopreneurs!

Grow in your skills and confidence as a therapist while building your own business.

Reach out today to schedule a free consultation!

02/14/2026

If you’ve experienced a significant loss, you most likely have experienced this STUG. This is a natural part of the grieving process. You’re not doing it wrong. It doesn’t mean you’ve “regressed.” These waves come out of nowhere when you least expect it. When it comes, just know that it’s temporary.

If you’ve ever felt like grief suddenly spikes out of nowhere, you’re not imagining it.

That surge has a name: a STUG.
Sudden.
Temporary.
Upsurge (of)
Grief.

Coined by researcher Therese Rando, STUGs help explain why grief can feel manageable one moment and overwhelming the next. They’re often activated by dates, memories, milestones, or seemingly small reminders. And while they can be intense, they are also temporary.

Knowing this can help remind us that these moments aren’t setbacks; they’re a normal part of how grief shows up.

Grief isn’t linear. And sometimes, it surges.