Exploring Life & Business with Rose Crouch of Olive Branch Therapy, PLLC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rose Crouch

Hi Rose, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up here in Nashville, as part of a tight knit, evangelical, homeschooled community. As I’ve navigated my own faith deconstruction, I’ve gotten a lot of practice in asking big questions, holding space for the nuance around changing beliefs and relationships, and rediscovering what it means to show up authentically in a world and culture that doesn’t always support that.

Like many other therapists, I came to the field with a love for people and a passion for helping. I’ve had my own experiences in therapy, and being in therapy myself has been a transformative experience in my life-
one that shaped not only who I am as a human, but also molded how I practice as a therapist. I completed my Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at MTSU in 2017, and spent my post-grad, pre-licensure years working at a treatment center for co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.

I opened my private practice, Olive Branch Therapy, in July 2020, and I’ve been here ever since. It’s truly my dream job! I work mostly with queer folks, ex-evangelicals and people who have left cults, and people who are recovering from complex PTSD, specifically religious trauma and sexual trauma. And it’s Nashville- so I also work with lots of creative folks in the music business!

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?
I definitely faced a few challenges during the long process of completing my Master’s degree and getting all my licensure requirements completed. My husband and I have faced our share of life curveballs- financial struggles, stressful jobs, a couple of cross-country moves, a change in graduate programs, some difficult medical issues. Going through a faith deconstruction while living in the Bible Belt brought its own set of painful experiences. We found out we were pregnant with our son while I was in grad school, so juggling a new baby with a full-time job and a demanding graduate program was a very intense period of my life. All in all, the process of completing my master’s degree and getting independently licensed took 7 years of work. It’s a strenuous process to become a licensed therapist!

However- I can also look back at the challenges and see how supported we’ve been by our people, and I feel so grateful for that. I can clearly see my privilege in having a safety net of family and friends to circle around me and help, from giving their time to care for our child to helping renovate our fixer-upper home to bringing meals when we were stressed or ill. I had multiple professors in grad school who let my baby tag along to class with me and held him while they taught so I could focus on learning. I have so many stories of how I’ve been loved and supported by my people! I believe that we heal and thrive in community, and I am so grateful to have people that believe in me and walk with me through all of life’s messy bits.

We’ve been impressed with Olive Branch Therapy, PLLC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I absolutely love being a therapist, and running my own practice is such a dream come true. I see all of my clients virtually through a video chat platform, and currently work with people all over the state. I’m an EMDR-trained trauma specialist, and work primarily with people who have complex PTSD. A large percentage of the people on my caseload are healing from religious trauma- many of my clients grew up in a cult, have left a high control evangelical church community, and/or are recovering from the harmful impact of purity culture. I work with a lot of queer folks, and a lot of musicians. My other niche is working with people who are ethically non-monogamous, which often (but not always!) overlaps with the kink community. I currently offer 1-1 therapy services, and I’m working on expanding my offerings to include some online courses around healing from purity culture and embodiment practices.

I’m known for being a really engaging, intuitive, and easy-going therapist. I ask really good questions, know how to challenge people directly and gently, and have a wicked sense of dark humor. I am skilled with adapting EMDR to help with more complex issues like dissociation, negative core beliefs, and deeply rooted shame. I work from a systemic, intersectional, anti-oppressive lens, and I’m not afraid to tackle things like racism, sexism, ableism, fatphobia, etc. in session.

I’m proud of my practice because I’m able to help a specific group of people that often have a tough time finding a therapist who is fiercely queer affirming, as well as knowledgeable and skilled in helping with ENM, cult trauma, and religious abuse. Particularly in this part of the country, there aren’t as many therapists who are skilled in working with my particular combination of specialties, so I’m happy to be able to offer that to our community.

Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Ahh! What a fun question. I was homeschooled until I went to college, and like every good homeschooler, I read lots of fantasy novels, competed in spelling bees, and baked my own bread. I was absolutely a nerd who studied a lot and took getting good grades very seriously. I was pretty extroverted and really enjoyed just being with people. I’ve always been someone that other people go to for support. I was a competitive swimmer for many years, so a little bit of a competitive streak (it now mostly comes out when I’m playing board games with my kid). I’m the oldest of six kids (yes, the oldest daughter to therapist pipeline is real), and there’s a part of me that has always loved to love on other people and find ways to care for them.

Pricing:

• $200/session

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.olivebranchtherapy.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/olivebranch_therapy