Upcoming Events
How to Start a Private Practice
Ivy Livengood, LCSW & Ellen livengood, lcsw
Saturday, August 8 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM ET
Join the Lexington Psychoanalytic Study Group for a candid conversation about establishing and sustaining a private practice.
Starting a practice of your own can feel both exciting and daunting. There are real risks and challenges to navigate—building a referral network from scratch, managing the financial uncertainty of the early months, handling billing and insurance decisions, and taking on the administrative work that no graduate program quite prepares you for. There's also the quieter, more personal work of developing a professional identity outside the structure of an institution or agency.
And yet, for many clinicians, private practice offers something difficult to find elsewhere: the autonomy to shape your schedule, your caseload, and your clinical approach; the freedom to practice in a way that reflects your values; and the opportunity to build something that sustains you over the long arc of a career, rather than depleting you.
In this presentation, we'll take an honest look at both sides—the practical considerations of logistics, finances, referrals, and professional identity, as well as the challenges and rewards of creating a practice that supports both your patients and yourself. We'll talk about what tends to go wrong, what makes the transition smoother, and how to know when you're ready.
Whether private practice is a distant possibility you're just beginning to consider, or a move you've been contemplating for years but haven't yet made, this conversation is designed to offer practical guidance, realistic expectations, and encouragement for thoughtful next steps. Bring your questions—there will be time for discussion.
Zoom link will be sent out a week before the event.
Saturday, august 8 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM ET
Location: Zoom
Fees:
Free to LPSG Members
$15 for Students and Residents
$25 for Professionals and Clinicians
Ivy Livengood, LCSW is a therapist, consultant, and founder of Ivy Consulting & Credentialing, a Lexington-based consulting firm she launched in 2021 after recognizing how little support existed for clinicians navigating private practice, insurance credentialing, and practice operations. Since then, she has helped hundreds of behavioral health professionals transition into private practice, managed credentialing initiatives for group practices and large behavioral health organizations, and consulted on practice operations and revenue cycle management. A Kentucky native passionate about strengthening the behavioral health profession, Ivy also provides psychotherapy in her own private practice, bringing a clinician's firsthand perspective to the business of building and sustaining a successful practice. She earned her Master of Social Work from the University of Kentucky, currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Kentucky Society for Clinical Social Work, and is training in the Advanced Psychodynamic Psychotherapy Program at the Cincinnati Psychoanalytic Institute.
Ellen Livengood, LCSW is a psychodynamic psychotherapist and owner of Your Guide to Livengood, LLC. After earning her MSW in 2014, she spent more than seven years at Eastern State Hospital and later worked in the University of Kentucky Behavioral Health Intake Department before transitioning to full-time private practice in 2021. Ellen completed the Advanced Psychotherapy Program at the Cincinnati Psychoanalytic Institute in 2025 and will begin formal psychoanalytic training there in the fall of 2026. Licensed in Kentucky and New York, she also provides LCSW supervision and consultation and serves on the boards of the Lexington Psychoanalytic Study Group.
