Meet Ilene Gold | Therapist, Clinical Supervisor, Yoga Instructor, and Owner of Discover Peace Within

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ilene Gold and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ilene, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I knew from an early age that I was meant to become a mental health therapist. In fact, as the oldest child of divorced parents, I was conditioned to be the “peacekeeper” and a good listener from the time I was 4 years old. Fast forward to a BA in Psychology, and a Masters of Science in Social Work later, when it came to starting my path to become a legit therapist and new to Denver, I was eager to help the community. My experiences in community mental health and school-based social work were extensive, rich, meaningful, and provided me with valuable opportunities to serve children and families in Denver. They were also really hard. Vicarious trauma is a thing we just don’t talk enough about. For every 1 family on my caseload at that time, my nervous system needed about 5 hours to process, detangle, and recover from because I was still a “green”-new-to-the-field therapist working with clients whose needs were high and the supports available were stretched thin.

About 6 years into my work as a clinical social worker, my husband and I decided to try to get pregnant. I knew that I could not sustain the level of energy and heart needed to stay in the community mental health arena, and be the type of present parent that I aspired (and still aspire) to be. So I transitioned from community mental health to starting my own mental health business. Within a week of starting my own solo practice, I discovered we were pregnant. The body sure does know how to respond to stress (or lack there of)! While growing a business, I was also growing a human. And 9 months after starting Discover Peace Within, we welcomed our daughter into the world.

That first year postpartum was a doozy. Balancing work and life, building a business while navigating first time parenthood, giving my presence and attention to clients at work and to my infant at home took a lot — all while being extremely sleep deprived! It was no easy feat. But with the help of our community, we made it through. Just 3 weeks shy of her 1st birthday, COVID turned the world upside down. Just as I was exiting the first year postpartum haze, the overwhelming stress and anxiety of a global pandemic sent me straight back to a haze of unknown and vicarious trauma. How was I (and any other therapist for that matter) supposed to support our clients through this wildly scary time when we were living in it ourselves? I’m not sure how I (or any of us therapists) did it. But we did.

In those isolating, lonely early years of COVID, I deeply earned for the collaboration, the team spirit, the camaraderie, and the support of a team. Truth be told, during my time working in community mental health, it was the connections to my colleagues that helped me sustain the high levels of vicarious trauma that I endured. In the summer of 2021, I knew I needed to shift my solo practice somehow: I needed deeper, more consistent peer connections, all while maintaining the flexibility of a solo practice. I needed to recreate what I loved about community mental health and also preserve the importance I place on being a mom.

As such, Discover Peace Within expanded to a mental health group practice. I brought on two trusted therapists to join the Discover Peace Within team. Since the fall of 2021, Discover Peace Within has expanded to 7 therapists and admin staff. What I love most about running a mental health group practice is the value placed on supporting other working moms. When you become a part of Discover Peace Within, we prioritize working with the clients that each individual therapist wants to work with, and offer the freedom to work when that therapist wants to work. At Discover Peace Within, we take care of all of the business side of things, so that therapists can show up, do their good clinical work, and go home to their families, or have time to take care of themselves. Running Discover Peace Within has become a passion because it allows me to stay connected to my social work roots, all while supporting therapists and their mental health, which translates to better client care.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Discover Peace Within is a mental health group practice designed for women, by women. We offer therapy, clinical consultation, community events, and yoga services that are holistic, and focused on our clients’ health, healing, and well-being. We understand and see the value of “the ripple effect”: when a woman feels empowered within herself, she is more confident and capable to empower and help her family, her friends, and her community. Therefore, helping to support the mental and emotional wellbeing of one woman can truly change the world.

We provide compassionate, supportive, heartfelt services with a holistic, mind-body-spirit approach. At Discover Peace Within, we understand that there is so much more to our clients’ healing and well-being than just addressing the mind. We offer a variety of services designed to support the hole of a woman including individual, couples and group counseling, in addition to community events, and yoga services. Our specialities involve supporting young adult women transitioning into adulthood, women on the path to becoming a mom, new moms faced with the challenges of parenthood, as well as new-again moms wondering how to manage it all, and couples therapy to help partners find closeness when life can feel so overwhelming.

We value a holistic approach to healing by way of working in close partnership with other providers such as nutritionists, naturopathic doctors, acupuncturists, body workers, pelvic floor PTs, and yoga instructors. The body and the mind are not two separate entities, so at Discover Peace Within, you will likely explore whether your physical, mental, emotional (and even spiritual) health are working in alignment toward the greatest version of yourself. Your therapist can support you with strategies to help bring those parts of you in closer connection or refer to one of our trusted partners.

Because we work with many busy woman, we offer the convenience and ease of virtual therapy. Commuting to a therapist’s office in the midst of a hectic work schedule while also juggling motherhood responsibilities doesn’t always work, so scheduling an online appointment can be the perfect way to still support yourself while doing all the things. However, sometimes it’s nice to get out of the house! Therefore, we also offer the option to meet in-person at our Denver-based location. Because our office is located at The River Yoga studio, many of our clients take advantage of pairing their therapy appointment with a yoga class. The mind-body connection is everything!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
(I love this question!)

Monday
9:30 am Pure Barre Cherry Creek class
followed by coffee and brunch at Olive & Finch
hit up South Broadway for an afternoon stroll and window shopping
followed by happy hour/late lunch at Uno Mas Taqueria y Cantina
view the sunset at Wash Park

Tuesday
grab coffee and breakfast at Sassafras in the Highlands
explore the shops on Tennyson Street
take the 2:00 pm Open Air Flow yoga class at The River Yoga – Sunnyside location
hit up Edgewater Marketplace for happy hour/dinner and watch the sun set from their rooftop tables

Wednesday
get Santiago’s breakfast burritos to-go and head up to the foothills for a hike – either 3 Sisters in Evergreen or Table Mountain in Golden
after the hike, explore the town (Evergreen or Golden) to window shop on their main streets and get food from a local place

Thursday
breakfast and coffee at Levin’s
spend hours exploring the trails and amphitheater of Red Rocks
stop for a quick pastry at Morrison Joe and walk the main street of Morrison
dinner at Reckless Noodle House

Friday
breakfast and coffee at One Fold
rent bikes and bike around City Park, Congress Park, and Cheesman Park – enjoy a previously prepared picnic for lunch/snacks at one of these parks
hit up a concert at a venue like Bluebird, The Fillmore, or Gothic Theater after dinner at City O City

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My first shoutout truly goes to my team of skilled, warm, and talented therapists. If it wasn’t for their faith and trust in me as the group practice owner, there would be no group practice! So I want to take a minute to name, acknowledge and thank Dana Polley, Lauren Brown, Lauren Robinson, Malia Reeder, Ruby Falk, and Kayln Zita for coming along this ride with me.

I owe a deep thanks to Linzy Bohman and Tiffany McClain – both former therapists and course creators – who have helped guide me in understanding the business side of running a group practice. They blend the heart and emotions of social work with the nitty gritty details of running a successful practice. Their support has helped me challenge my narrative around money mindset, and equip me with the tools to understand profitability from a place of my core values.

Lastly, my husband Jason Gold deserves a major shoutout for believing in me, with 100% confidence, even when (and especially when) I lose sight of that confidence. He always tells me to dream big. I owe him an abundance of thanks for walking this journey of business ownership with me.

Website: https://www.discoverpeacewithin.com

Instagram: @discoverpeacewithin

Linkedin: Discover Peace Within

Twitter: N/A

Facebook: Discover Peace Within

Yelp: Discover Peace Within

Image Credits
Kristen Nichole Photo