Let's Unpack That #8: Slow Work in a Fast Feed: Counseling in the Age of Social Media

Your feed offers endless tips, bold diagnoses, and confident scripts—but what happens when all that noise walks into the therapy room? We dig into the real-world impact of mental health content on client expectations, counselor boundaries, and the ethics of showing up online. With guest counselor Lauren Collins-Knight, we examine the tension between short-form advice and the slow, relational work that actually changes behavior.

We talk candidly about “I already saw that on Instagram,” the pressure to deliver novelty, and the client fear of not being “sick enough” to deserve care. From DSM worries to the weekly surge of buzzwords, we share ways to re-center clients: explain levels of care, treat diagnosis as a living description, and translate symptoms within context. We look at the upside, too—lowered stigma, easier access to resources, and advocacy that travels faster than any brochure—without glossing over parasocial risks and the thin line between educator and influencer.

If you post professionally, you’ll appreciate our grounded take on ACA ethics, especially Section H: why separate profiles matter, how to write clear boundaries into your bio, and what informed consent should say about digital communication. We also offer a practical tool clients love—the 1% change framework—which shrinks goals to something doable this week and turns inspiration into habit. Whether you’re a clinician refining your online presence or a listener sorting signal from noise in your own feed, you’ll leave with language, structure, and next steps that respect both care and context.

If this conversation helped you think differently about counseling online, subscribe, share with a colleague, and leave a review to help others find the show. What’s your 1% change for the week?

What do you think? Send us your questions or topics you'd like us to unpack!

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If you’re a counselor in Ohio and would like to get involved as part of production or as a guest, or know someone who might be interested, please email us at ohiocounselingconversations@gmail.com!

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Created by the OCA's Media, Public Relations, and Membership (MPRM) Committee & its Podcast Subcommittee

·Hosted by Victoria Frazier

·Pre-Production & Coordination by Marisa Cargill and Victoria Frazier

·Editing by Marisa Cargill

·Original music selections by Elijah Satoru Wood

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Welcome to Let's Unpack That, a short form segment from Ohio Counseling Conversations, where we dig into the topics, tools, and truths that shape our work as counselors. Whether it's a trending issue, a clinical insight, or something we've all been thinking about, we're here to process it together.

SPEAKER_02 0:25

Welcome back to Ohio Counseling Conversations. Let's unpack that. I'm Victoria Brazier, and today I'm so excited to be joined by my friend Lauren. Lauren, do you want to introduce yourself? Sure can. My name is Lauren Collins Knight.

Welcome And Guest Introduction

SPEAKER_01 0:38

I am a longtime listener, first-time guest, so I'm very excited to be here. I am currently a licensed professional counselor at Navigate Counseling and Consultation Services. We're in LGBTQIA affirming practice. And what else? What else is interesting? I'm the president of the North Central Ohio Counseling Association, North Central chapter. And I'm just excited to be here.

Setting The Topic: Counselors Online

SPEAKER_02 1:02

Oh my gosh, I'm so excited to have you. We're always so excited to have new voices on the podcast. So I thought for this episode, it might be interesting to talk about how we're trained to use social media or not use, um, to talk about the different types of content and posting that counselors do. And then to maybe think about how this interacts with our ethical obligations. So I know when I was in school, like I also I was I always had private social media because I was a very paranoid child. And even like when I had to get my like background check to start practicum, I was like, are they gonna know? I Googled how to poison someone. Um, I was reading a lot of Agatha Christie at the time. Like, please do not fear. I have not poisoned anyone to my knowledge. But I was so scared about like what our online presence can be. And then I feel like school really reinforced that for me. And of course, there are like boundaries and ethical obligations that we'll maybe get into like a little bit later. But what kind of when you are on social media, do you see things about being a counselor? I know like my TikTok algorithm likes to serve me like counseling tips. Like, what do you see when you're online?

SPEAKER_01 2:18

Oh gosh, Tori. My algorithm on all the apps tuned into like counseling TikTok, Instagram. I see all these different kinds. There are some that are like the counseling tips. It's like the expected viewer is also like a peer counselor, but I've also seen some that are like kind of what do I want to say? Like maybe like coping skills tips, like geared towards clients, or even like some other things that are geared towards like let me help you like start your private practice or make more money in this field, or like how can you diversify your income? And I'm like, ah, I don't want to see that. I want to see the counseling tips.

Algorithms And Counseling Content

SPEAKER_02 2:58

Yeah, I feel like it can be a little overwhelming when your algorithm figures out that this is your job. I feel like once mine got hipped to my job, like I got nothing but counseling stuff for two weeks, and it got so overwhelming that I like had to stop going on my apps for the time. I did say, you know. Yeah. And I think one of the things that can kind of be challenging is I don't know if you hear this, but sometimes from my clients, I'll get like, we will have to have a talk about like, we need to move our bodies more, or like you need to drink water and eat food, like that, like like bottom of the pyramid kind of stuff. And they'll be like, Well, I know that already. I saw it on Instagram. Why are you just telling me things that are on Instagram? And like I hear that, and that can't be all we do, but I I feel like sometimes I'm like competing with social media when I'm in my office because they're like, Well, I've already seen that. And it's like, okay, well, then why aren't we doing it?

SPEAKER_01 3:53

Like, let's talk about that. You were speaking to my imposter syndrome, Tori. Every time I want to introduce a new skill or technique, I'm like, what if they've already seen it on the internet? And they're like, Why are you sharing this with me as if it's brand new?

SPEAKER_02 4:07

Yeah, and I've I've had people say that to my face, and like it made at first I was like, Oh no, I'm awful. But then I was like, well, that's because that is basic information. But the reason we're here is like to talk about why it's not happening because there is a reason. You know what I mean? But I think, I don't know, it's it I think social media can be like two-pronged a little bit in my brain, because on one hand, it is lowering some stigma. And then on the other hand, it's almost creating more stigma about either like we're not providing new enough information or like their problems aren't big enough. Because I think like I'm thinking about, not to be controversial, but like a lot of like when I started getting a lot of social media about like counseling and mental health, I would get a lot of people who were saying that they had dissociative identity disorders. Obviously, but it was just like there was such a culture around it, and it was so strange. And I had people come to my office be like, well, it's not as bad as this person, and they showed me like TikToks they were watching, and they were like, See, I'm fine because I don't have this, or like I don't have strong dissociative episodes, and so it almost made them feel like, well, there's like their moderate to severe depression isn't enough to like be seeking treatment, like they were worried it was taking away time from other people.

SPEAKER_01 5:38

Yes, I know what you're talking about. This like idea that I'm like not sick enough or my disorder isn't like intense enough to warrant the services that I'm receiving. And kind of when that shows up in my office, I do like to talk about like different levels of care. And like I provide outpatient services, and I'm like, this is what this is. If you were having like more intense symptoms, I honestly wouldn't be able to see you if you were experiencing like psychosis like that. I would have to get some other people involved so you would have a care team. And so that's kind of like what I lean into when that shows up in the counseling room.

Competing With Instagram Advice

SPEAKER_02 6:18

Yeah. I think anytime like social media comes into my room, I know that it's gonna be kind of a heavy education day, either on like how therapy works or what we're expected to do. I also think like talking about diagnosis, if the client's in a place to like receive that information and where it's helpful, like why do we have to give a diagnosis? What does that mean? And I think I don't know, I I I've yet to meet someone working in like client-facing care who doesn't have like mixed feelings about the DSM and diagnosis. You know, I think it's it's so helpful to have like a shared common language and ways to catch people up quickly. And also they're so my there's I feel like clients are either really scared when you pull that book out, or sometimes they're like, Oh, finally, another one. I'd like another, please. Finally, answers. Finally, answers. Or they're like, I don't know, some clients like they they want all the language to explain things, and so they're almost like trying to collect Pokemon cards of like, do you think it's this? Do you think it's that? And well, I appreciate their questions, and I always want to like clarify and explore why we're thinking that it can social media can also be like there will be a new buzzword for like a few months where everyone's coming to my office asking about a certain diagnosis. And it's it's it's so tricky to explain like, well, having trouble focusing could be ADHD, or it could be depression, it could be anxiety, it could be that the world is kind of not a kind place right now. Like, I think it's a little hard, even for like people who are newer to the field, to kind of parse that, much less clients who are going through their own things.

SPEAKER_01 8:15

Absolutely. I try and talk to my clients about how their diagnosis is like a living, breathing thing because they're living, breathing people. And so when they do come in, and maybe with this like this latest, I don't want to say trend, but like focus on a symptom or a diagnosis. And I do try and explore with them like where, like, what does that mean to you if you were to consider yourself maybe to have ADHD or like more intense anxiety? Like, how does that make you think about yourself differently, if at all? Because that's that's what I've been taught is like the most important thing. Bring it back to the client.

Diagnosis Culture And “Sick Enough”

SPEAKER_02 8:53

Yeah, I really appreciate that. I think that it can be so easy to get caught up in what the words are and we get away from how they experience things. I think one of the other things that can be hard about social media, just in in my office at least, I have a lot of kids and a lot of teens. And it's such a good way to build rapport with clients. Like I've even moving away from like counselors posting on social media, I have to imagine that creates a newer kind of issue. I don't have like a professional social media account that's for me. Like I help with the counseling associations, and my personal is very is locked down. But some of my clients listen to the podcast, and that has changed kind of our relationship where they have like questions for me about something I said. And so I also think when we're posting on social media, we have to be mindful of like anyone can hear, and it might almost like blur boundaries or like change how your relationship works a little bit if they're able to like have access to you outside of your office.

SPEAKER_01 10:06

You know what I mean? Exactly. Outside of that like controlled environment of your office, you know, you we might not be, you know, doing this podcast episode with our clients in the forefront of like what would happen if they heard this. We're doing this for our peers for the profession. But you mentioned like sometimes this like changes how they view you, you know, and our relationship with social media. Because like you, I don't have like a professional Instagram or like any kind of like professional profile where I'm like Lauren the counselor, like sharing my you know, day-to-day or whatever. And I think that those can be helpful, but in a similar, I don't know, way to other like influencers, like that's partially like you trying to be an influencer as a counselor, and there is like that potential for a parasocial relationship to happen. Like yeah.

SPEAKER_02 11:06

I think it's so interesting, not to sound like the biggest nerd in the world, but knowing we were doing this episode, I went through the ACA code of ethics just like prior to our recording to pull out some things that just stuck out to me. And there is actually like section H is all about like technology and counseling, and it there is a specific code that's about our professional presence online. And in the code of ethics, it actually says that if you wish to maintain a professional and personal presence for social media use, you have to have separate profiles and clearly distinguish between them and say, like, this is me wearing my counselor hat, and this is me as like a citizen. And I think it's so interesting that we've kind of baked that into our ethical code. A lot of that section is about like telehealth and things like that, but there are also some things about just how we're meant to conduct ourselves online.

SPEAKER_01 12:05

It's wild that social media has become like so ingrained in our culture that we're already considering it in our ethical code and you know trying to troubleshoot before it happens what it would be like to have your own professional account versus your personal one.

Explaining Levels Of Care

SPEAKER_02 12:24

And I want to say this ethical code hasn't been updated since like 2014. And so I have to imagine the next time we get a new set of ethical codes from the ACA, that they're I'd imagine that section has to be expanded. Because like another ethical code talks about like if you use distance counseling technology or social media, you have to develop knowledge and skills related to technical, ethical, and legal considerations. And also that we have to explain to our clients as part of informed consent the benefits, limitations, and boundaries of the use of social media. I have to imagine that pertains more to counselors who maintain a more public social media, but I just thought that was so interesting that that's that's all in there.

SPEAKER_01 13:19

Absolutely. W as you were sharing that, I was thinking about kind of like the counselors that start their own private practice. And you know, part of social media is how they get clients or at least like get like eyes to see like, hey, could this be a good fit for me? And that could be like part of the benefit of social media is like you get to like advertise yourself a little bit more than just your psychology today profile. But there's also these like limitations, like that's still just like a select version of me that you see I don't know, what is it like 30 seconds to a couple minutes long? If it's like of short form content versus like just pictures, compared to like you're gonna be sitting with me for an hour. We're gonna talk about real stuff that's happening in your life.

DSM Fears, Labels, And Buzzwords

SPEAKER_02 14:12

Yeah. I think that maybe in my mind is one of the things that seems challenging about maintaining a more personal online presence is like that content oftentimes is like even if it's talking about like if it's psychoeducation or sharing tips, like you are the focus of that. And they you get a sense of people through the screen. And then when clients come in for counseling, like we're still, of course, like active participants, but we're not the focus of things. And I I always wonder like if I had seen hours of my counselor before coming to sessions with them, like I feel like I'd have more questions or curiosities about people. And obviously, we handle self-disclosure and things differently depending on who we are, but I don't know. I always think about that too.

SPEAKER_01 15:00

I get what you mean. Like, if I saw like all the short forum content about my counselor, and then I went in and I was expected to talk more, I'd be like, well, online you share all this information or you know, things like that, like psychoeducation, and here I am being the one to talk most. Like that would almost make me anxious.

SPEAKER_02 15:23

Yeah, yeah. Or like I saw you make an oat milk latte this morning. I hate oat milk or something, I don't know. But like just I feel like you you're you're providing so much more information than like people get in session. On the other hand, though, like the other thing I thought about just as I was kind of like turning this topic over in my head is advocacy work and how wonderful social media is as a tool for that. Like obviously it's one of the pillars of our profession and it's talked about at length in our counseling ethics and things. And so I do think that there are a lot of counselors I see as I've kind of worked to curate my algorithm that are doing a lot of advocacy online that I really appreciate or like sharing resources or tools or information, just especially like with the state of our world and how much information we're taking in on a daily basis that we weren't really made for. I think advocacy in terms of providing resources and also advocacy in terms of like be mindful of what you're consuming is such a valuable thing. Some of our counselors who are on social media are doing as well.

SPEAKER_01 16:33

For sure, because you could like get really burnt out if you were like the professional creator trying to, you know, make all this short form content or share all these resources. And you know, we have to be careful with like how how much extra stuff are we gonna take on outside of just like our original professional responsibility as a counselor with a client. Yeah. But my favorite kinds of like how did you say it? Like the way that my algorithm is tuned in are also like the advocacy and like resource focused or like different kinds of like groups that are tailored to specific, like more like niche client populations always warms my heart.

SPEAKER_02 17:19

Yeah. I I I think that it can be such a valuable tool for counselors for clients, as long as we're being mindful of the fact that like we don't know these people and we can't put blind trust, right? Like, even if they're someone we really appreciate, humans are fallible. And so we just have to kind of like keep the context in mind. Absolutely. So, in the interest of trying to find a bow to wrap around this episode, do you have anything that you've learned on social media that you find really helpful in your work with clients?

Keeping Diagnosis Client-Centered

SPEAKER_01 17:54

Of course I do. Of course, I have my little ribbon, little bow for us today. Lately, a lot of conversations I've been having with my clients have focused on this concept that I learned about from social media about like what is your 1%? Like, what could, if we did this, make things like 1% like better or closer to your goals or you know, feel just a little bit more fulfilled. And I really love this like framework of the 1% because I have some clients who start listing like all these things, and I'll be like, hey, I love the enthusiasm. That sounds like 10 or 20%. I want to focus on this 1% with you between now and the next time I see you. And it has been a really kind of like helpful brainstorming, I don't know, kind of conversation to have with my clients and to get them thinking about like what is the small change they can make right now. Cause sometimes it's so easy to get caught up in how many steps there are in making a change.

SPEAKER_02 18:59

I love that. I think that's so such a good way to get clients to scale down. Do you have a 1% right now?

Boundaries When Clients Find You Online

SPEAKER_01 19:09

Oh my gosh, Tori put me on the spot like this. I think my 1% right now is I am recovering from a cold, unfortunately. And it took away when I was all stuffy, it took away me getting to go to the gym and getting to move more. And I just noticed when I get to move or like dance, I'm really into like the dance workout things. Those are very fun. When I get to move my body before I start my work day, things just go better for me. And so that's my 1% is to start that routine back up again.

SPEAKER_02 19:48

I love that. I think my 1% is putting away all of my laundry. I think that would clear up a lot of mental and physical space in my life. Tori. So I think I'm going to do that after.

SPEAKER_01 20:01

Tori, I think. Can I have two 1%? Because that is also my 1%, just in a different area of life.

SPEAKER_02 20:07

I'm not the overlord of the 1%. I think you're allowed to have as many 1% as you want, as long as you don't try to use them all at the same time. Absolutely. Well, thank you so much. I really enjoyed our conversation. I'm really looking forward to kind of like going back on social media as we all are, but with a bit of a new perspective and some new things to think about. So thank you so much. Of course.

SPEAKER_01 20:30

Thank you so much for having me on the podcast. And I don't know, just having this conversation with me. I really enjoyed it. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_00 20:37

Obviously, we'll have to have you back. I would love to. Thank you. Thanks for joining us for Let's Unpack That, brought to you by Ohio Counseling Conversations and the Ohio Counseling Association. If it sparks something for you, share it with a colleague or drop us a line. We'd love to keep the conversation going. Thanks for listening. And until next time, we encourage you to keep unpacking the big stuff one conversation at a time. Let's unpack that as a podcast intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views, opinions, and references shared by hosts or guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Ohio Counseling Association. Any appearance by a guest does not imply an endorsement of them, their views, or any organizations they may represent. Content discussion should not be interpreted as official positions, recommendations, or endorsements by OCA or its leadership.