After many years of practice and trying to fit in a system that I did not belong to because “this was the way to practice” I realized it was not “my way” of working with people. After looking at what I love doing, my life purpose, the type of work I wanted to do with clients, and wanting to have a balanced life, I decided not to take insurance. I want a clean relationship with my clients and not focus on the insurance piece. There are a lot of extra behind-the-scenes duties after a therapist sees a client. Not working with health insurance helps me enjoy more of my work with my clients and expectations are more clear and our relationship is less stressful. I am able to be in charge of my private practice doing what I love the most and having a more balanced life in general.