Today we’d like to introduce you to Colby Agostinelli.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I would say my career/ practice is a story of happy accidents (but not without intention and work of course)! I had always dreamt of going to medical school and becoming a surgeon. Reaching the end of my undergraduate training I realized I wanted something different for my life but I didn’t know what. Within a matter of a couple months I had applied, interviewed and began classes at a marriage & family therapy masters program with a special track for sex therapy. After graduating I opened my own practice and started seeing clients and pursing opportunities to speak and lecture. Mere days before COVID-19 lockdown I found myself transitioning to a group practice as met someone through a teaching gig who was interested in working with me and in the same week a colleague said they had the perfect student intern for me. This prompted me to pursue further training as a clinical supervisor to best support my staff. I became an AAMFT Approved Supervisor and an AASECT Sex Therapy Supervisor. Over the years to follow I was lucky enough to meet folks who would end up working at the practice organically – coincidentally on FB marketplace, through teaching at local universities, and most of all word of mouth. Since 2023 we have opened back up a brick and mortar office, seen many students through their internships, many budding therapists through their clinical licensure and served many many clients in our community and afar.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The biggest struggle that is ongoing is finding balance when it comes to running a human centric business in late stage capitalism. I want myself and my staff to make a wage worthy of the training and ongoing work we put in AND I want therapy to be affordable to all who need it. We are a private pay only practice for a number of reasons from clinical ethics to political values to the sheer fact that insurance does not see couple and sex therapy as a real form of therapy. For us, insurance doesn’t equal accessibility but we understand it can limit who we get to work with. We have focused on being the best we can be for the clients who choose us rather than trying to be accessible to everyone which no therapist can be.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
We specialize in relational work which has many meanings! Relational work can refer to the fact that we enjoy working with multiple people in the room, working with relationship topics with individual clients as well as referring to a therapeutic style where the therapist utilizes the relationship between client and therapist as a therapeutic intervention in itself. More specifically we work with couples, families, friends, friends, teens and adults on a wide variety of topics from life transitions, communication and assertiveness, Queer identity, ADHD & Autism, kink, non monogamy, sexual desire, sexual pelvic pain, family trauma and so much more!
I am extremely proud to be vocal about our values. We stand firmly in the knowledge that therapy cannot be apolitical and that we cannot remove our personal identities from our work as therapists.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Put yourself out there! Look at “networking” as simply saying yes to meeting new people and talking about yourself and what you do. Don’t be afraid to take a risk and go in with an open mind/show up for the experience knowing it may take you anywhere.
Pricing:
- We offer a range of sliding scale fees amongst our clinicians from $40-$260!
- We also provide superbills and help folks check for out of network reimbursement.
- We accept VCAP (PA victims compensation program) for those who have experienced sexual assault. Clients may receive up to 35k towards therapy expenses.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.phillycouplesandsextherapy.com/
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/sextherapywithcolby
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/philly-couples-sex-therapy/
