The Conversations That Led Me to Open My Practice
A business plan didn't lead me into private practice. It was one question I heard repeatedly from patients and families in medical oncology:
"Do you know an oncology psychotherapist I can continue seeing after I leave the hospital?"
Often, I lacked a referral that reflected the care they sought or the care I believed they deserved.
Those conversations stayed with me long after they ended. Over time, they became one of the reasons I chose to build a practice of my own.
Today, I have the privilege of walking alongside people living with cancer and other serious illnesses as they navigate uncertainty, loss, hope, change, and everything in between. My approach is grounded in presence, relationship, curiosity, and acceptance. Rather than seeing people as diagnoses to be treated or problems to be solved, I strive to create a space where they can slow down, be received as whole human beings, and discover new ways of relating to themselves, their loved ones, and the profound realities that serious illness often brings.
Read more on my guest blog for FemCity International Networking Group for Women, where I share reflections on psychotherapy, cancer, serious illness, and the healing power of relationship.
— Candice Tummillo, LCSW, OSW-C