Why Therapists Need to Grow Too
Dr. Lisa Marie Bobby is a licensed psychologist, licensed marriage and family therapist, board-certified coach, AAMFT clinical supervisor, host of the Love, Happiness, and Success Podcast and founder of Growing Self.
Last updated: December 17, 2025
As therapists, we spend our days supporting other people’s growth, healing, and change, often while setting aside our own needs. In my work at Growing Self and through conversations with fellow clinicians, one truth comes up again and again: why therapists need to grow too is not a philosophical question, but a practical one tied directly to burnout, fulfillment, and long-term sustainability in this profession.
We help clients move through grief, anxiety, trauma, relationship challenges, and major life transitions. We hold space for vulnerability and guide people toward healthier patterns. Yet once licensure is complete and a practice is established, many clinicians quietly stop asking an essential question: Are you still growing, personally and professionally, through your work as a therapist?
Why therapists need to grow too is a question many clinicians never stop to ask, even though the answer often sits at the center of burnout, boredom, and long-term career dissatisfaction. When growth slows, even deeply meaningful work can begin to feel heavy or emotionally draining.
Competence Is Not the Same as Vitality
Many therapists reach a point in their careers where competence feels solid. You know how to help. You understand your clients. Sessions move smoothly.
However, competence alone does not create vitality.
Over time, when learning slows and challenge disappears, therapists often notice disengagement, fatigue, or a subtle loss of joy in the work. This experience does not signal failure or lack of dedication. Instead, it often points to stalled growth.
Therapy is emotionally demanding. To show up fully, therapists need more than boundaries and self-care routines. We also need curiosity, momentum, and professional expansion. This is precisely why therapists need to grow too, even when things appear to be “working.”
Why Therapists Need to Grow Too to Prevent Burnout
Self-care matters. Rest matters. Time off matters.
Still, rest alone does not protect against burnout if the work itself has become stagnant.
One of the strongest protective factors against therapist burnout is intentional, ongoing growth. Research supports this. Studies on deliberate practice and therapist development show that clinicians who remain actively engaged in learning environments experience improved effectiveness and professional vitality (Goldberg et al., 2016).
Similarly, strong clinical supervision and consultation reduce emotional exhaustion and turnover risk (Knudsen et al., 2008). Growth generates energy. It restores forward movement. It reconnects therapists with meaning.
For this reason, why therapists need to grow too is not about doing more. It is about doing what sustains the work.
When Growth Stops, Everyone Feels It
When therapists stop learning and developing, the impact extends beyond the clinician.
Clients notice.
Clients trust therapists with their inner worlds. They show up vulnerable and open. They deserve presence, curiosity, and engagement. When a therapist feels burned out or emotionally flat, the therapeutic relationship can quietly suffer.
This dynamic often leads to guilt or self-criticism for therapists, which deepens exhaustion. Over time, that spiral increases the risk of disengagement or departure from the profession. Understanding why therapists need to grow too helps interrupt this cycle early.
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Craving community, consultation, private practice support and learning experiences that help you grow personally and professionally?
Growth Looks Different for Different Therapists
There is no single right way to grow as a therapist.
For some clinicians, growth includes advanced clinical training, specialization, or trauma-informed work. Others feel energized by systemic advocacy and broader impact, such as addressing structural issues in mental health systems (How Therapists Can Drive Systemic Change).
Many therapists rediscover vitality through business development and sustainability, particularly when they adopt an entrepreneurial mindset that supports their wellbeing (The Entrepreneurial Mindset for Therapists). Others find clarity by revisiting scope of competence and professional boundaries (Therapist Scope of Competence).
Goal setting can also be a powerful growth lever when it aligns career direction with personal values (Setting Goals for a Life and Career You Love as a Therapist).
The path differs, yet the principle remains the same: why therapists need to grow too is about staying engaged, not chasing credentials.
The Power of Mentorship, Consultation, and Community
After licensure, many therapists suddenly face professional isolation. Responsibility increases. Support often disappears.
Without intentional community, clinicians juggle complex clinical work, ethical decision-making, emotional labor, and business demands alone. That isolation contributes to burnout and preventable mistakes (5 Common Therapist Mistakes That Could Derail Your Practice).
Growth thrives in relationships. Consultation groups, mentorship, and professional communities create emotional safety and perspective. They also strengthen professional identity, which research shows is directly linked to lower burnout and higher engagement (Um & Nam, 2024).
This is why therapists need to grow too, and why that growth is rarely sustainable in isolation (Don’t Go It Alone! Therapist Isolation and How to Build Community).
Self-of-the-Therapist Work Is Central to Growth
Some of the most meaningful professional growth comes from self-reflection rather than technique.
Every therapist brings personal history, beliefs, and relational patterns into the therapy room. Understanding how those factors influence clinical work requires safety, honesty, and support.
Self-of-the-therapist growth deepens empathy, sharpens judgment, and strengthens the therapeutic alliance. For many clinicians, this process also opens new professional directions, including leadership, coaching, or organizational consultation (How Therapists Can Transition Into Work as an Organizational Consultant and Executive Coach).
You Were Never Meant to Do This Alone
As you reflect on why therapists need to grow too, it becomes clear that this profession was never designed for isolation.
Therapists thrive when supported, challenged, and connected. Growth keeps this work sustainable. It preserves meaning. It allows clinicians to show up for clients with presence and care over the long term.
If burnout, boredom, or emotional fatigue have begun to surface, it may not be time to leave the profession. It may be time to grow into the next chapter.
As you consider what your own growth might look like next, I want you to know this work was never meant to be done in isolation. One of the most meaningful ways I support therapists who want to stay engaged, grounded, and fulfilled over the long haul is through The Growth Collective for Therapists. It’s a professional home I created for clinicians who value real consultation, thoughtful mentorship, and being in community with others who truly understand the weight and responsibility of this work. If you’re ready to give your own growth the same care and attention you offer your clients, I’d love to share this space with you.
xoxo,
Dr. Lisa Marie Bobby
Resources:
Goldberg, S. B., Babins-Wagner, R., Rousmaniere, T., Berzins, S., Hoyt, W. T., Whipple, J. L., & Miller, S. D. (2016). Creating a climate for therapist improvement: A case study of an agency focused on outcomes and deliberate practice. Psychotherapy, 53(3), 367–375. https://doi.org/10.1037/pst0000060
Knudsen, H. K., Roman, P. M., & Abraham, A. J. (2008). Clinical supervision, emotional exhaustion, and turnover intention: A study of substance abuse treatment counselors. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 35(4), 387–395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2008.02.003
Um, M. Y., & Nam, J. Y. (2024). Social resources and professional identity: Predicting counselors-in-training’s burnout and engagement. Counselor Education and Supervision, 63(1), 3–18. https://doi.org/10.1002/ceas.12289
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