Tommy Thompson speaks on starting Sunrise Counseling Service LCPC and honoring the father of his wife

Jeff Williams:
Welcome to Community Voices, a production of NPR Illinois. I'm your co-host, Jeff Williams. In the studio with me today, Tommy Thompson. Tommy, how's it going?
Tommy Thompson:
It's going well. It's a great day.
Jeff Williams:
Right. It is a nice day. I just was outside for a little bit. You are a licensed clinical professional counselor and owner of Sunrise Counseling. Is that correct?
Tommy Thompson:
That's correct. We started Sunrise Counseling last January 2025. I'd worked for a couple of other private practices in town with the ultimate goal of eventually starting my own.
Jeff Williams:
Starting your own, sure, yeah.
Tommy Thompson:
And it took a couple of small steps to get there. So, a big jump and with some encouragement from my wife, we looked into it and finally said, okay, let's do it.
Jeff Williams:
Let's do it and let's get in there. So yeah, that is, as you mentioned that right off the bat, that's got to be a little bit of a process. You know, first it starts as like a maybe a little spark. Can you talk about that a little bit? How it is where you're, you know, you're working in the field and then it's like, you know, I want to I'm thinking, yeah, let's do this. Let's jump in and start a place.
Tommy Thompson:
Absolutely. It is a bit of a spark of I don't know what to do with this yet. And I don't know how to turn this into something more meaningful, how to turn this actually into a business from an idea. And so we looked into it a bit more. We took it in phases of finding a name, setting up the business itself, how I'd want to do it, and then eventually if I'm going to do this, if we're going to do this, what's important about this? What is meaningful about this, of starting my own practice instead of working for someone else? What does it mean to me and what do I want to offer?
Jeff Williams:
Right, because then you can approach it from a way that you are really feeling. You can kind of tailor it in the way you want, right? So, you have a, are you an online presence or you have a brick and mortar?
Tommy Thompson:
Both.
Jeff Williams:
Okay.
Tommy Thompson:
Yeah, flexibility is the name of the game. We have; I have more people interested in coming in person now after a big increase of people being more comfortable with online. There's a shift back to where I want to be in a separate place from my daily life. I don't want to do this at home. Kids are around or partner or I need a different space to be in. I do see people online and the vast majority of people I see in the office.
Jeff Williams:
In the office, yeah, that's nice. Well, can you let people know where your office is like, you know, located and how to contact you then?
Tommy Thompson:
So, I'll leave some business cards with you. Sunrise Counseling, IL, https://www.sunrisecounselingil.com/ is website. You can type in my name, Tommy Thompson, LCPC, and I'll come up on any search engine through a couple of means, have access to phone number, e-mail, and then I'm on Ash Grove Drive on the west side of Springfield behind Culver's. most people know Culver's more than anything.
Jeff Williams:
Wabash, West Wabash, then out there, yeah, somewhat by Culver's then. Are you from the Springfield area?
Tommy Thompson:
I moved here to go to grad school at UIS for a counseling program. It was the HTC program at the time, and now it's the School of Counseling and Social Work, I believe. They rebranded. And I started the program in 2000 and.
Jeff Williams:
Okay, right on.
Tommy Thompson:
Been living here since then.
Jeff Williams:
Right on. So where are you from before that?
Tommy Thompson:
Bit complicated. I was technically born in Dallas, Texas. I lived there for a few years. Stuff wasn't so hot for my mom then. We moved to Illinois, lived with my grandpa for a while, resettled, and then moved to a small town called Roodhouse.
Jeff Williams:
Oh yeah, Roodhouse!
Tommy Thompson:
I lived there from about 8 years old until the time that I moved out at 22 or so.
Jeff Williams:
Okay. I was actually, I will take my bike around and ride, just go to different parts of the state and just start riding from. So, I started a ride in Roodhouse before and kind of rode through because isn't it like Winchester is somewhat in the area. Manchester is a little bit further over. White Hall is somewhat, and okay. So, I got the area dialed in, yeah. I remember it was a hot day. I went on a ride, got a rude house, and kind of looped around more or less to the west. And when I got back, I was kind of just riding along. And I was kind of by, on this square, I think there's, it's like a post office, I think, kind of, there's sort of a park in the middle of the town, right? And I can't remember if it was a post office or if it just was something that reminded me of one that's right there on the square. And yeah, this dude, well, I was in a band, you know, that played for a long time and toured a lot and stuff. But yeah, this dude was just like, hey, when's the next time you guys are playing? I was like, dude, this is, it's just one of those random things that I just remember being there. And he said, the guy, he said he was getting ready, like in two weeks, he was getting ready to move to Portland, you know, but I don't, we didn't really, you know, other than that, we just talked, didn't even exchange names or anything like that. But anyhow, so yeah, so do you want to talk about your clientele or any certain, you know, services that you have for people, you know?
Tommy Thompson:
You mentioned before, offering or opening a private practice for specific clientele. And what ultimately, I wanted to do was to provide practice that had a wide range of influences. So, it's me and there's three other clinicians there that are working with me. We have I'd say the same threads and beliefs about counseling, how to be there for people, what is helpful change for people in life. And we all also come from different backgrounds, lived experiences, cultural backgrounds, spiritual backgrounds. And that was a driving force in opening the practices, wanting to have someone there that if you were a client calling in, you could see someone that you could connect with. That you could see someone that had, I mean, at least some of the shared experiences that you could go through. And then the clinical experience, to back that up, one of the hardest pieces of reaching out for counseling is usually you're struggling when you do so. you reach out and you try and connect with someone and either told insurance isn't accepted or that there's a wait list or there's no one with that particular specialty. that can see you and no place can ever cover everything. Sure, will you? Again, a driving force for me and the practice is to try and have as much available for people as possible.
Jeff Williams:
Right. In a way, it's not really like a one-size-fits-all for people. Somebody comes to you, it's just a matter of keeping that person feeling as comfortable as possible. And sometimes it's kind of like, it can even be like an innate thing. You're not even sure what it is, So I didn't know, did you want to kind of go into that a little bit more at all?
Tommy Thompson:
Sure. And you had asked about clientele. So, for instance, people ask me what my specialty is. And technically, my specialties would be couples counseling and substance use counseling, substance use disorder counseling, because I have specialty certifications in those, and credentialing. And then I follow that up quickly with, I believe my specialty is adaptability. I see children, teenagers, adults, couples, families, play therapy for kids, that I've tried to expand what I can do as, you know, people come to me, if there is an instance where I really do feel over my head, then it's not ethical to accept that person. However, again, it's difficult when they reach out to you and maybe I can get them in next week and they reach out to someone else and that clinic, that specialty has a three, four month wait. If I can learn if I can adapt and be helpful if I can provide some care. It's usually what I try to do. And that's allowed me a lot of adaptability over the years of being able to see people for a wide range of issues and age groups and challenges.
Jeff Williams:
Right. Now that's in a way you're kind of in a And I don't know for sure. I'm just saying this from like the outside. It seems like that is a thing where in a way a person either has to realize or learn. You kind of let your ego go maybe in a way. And like I've said, I'm just saying this so you can correct me if I'm wrong. And it wouldn't be for everybody like that, but some people where if you feel like, this is really my, this is my thing, and that's great, and for some situations, but in a way, if you're able to be flexible with the person, you can then, you're sharing that experience with them, even if right off the bat, it's not one that you, a path that you've gone down before with inside of this realm. But if you're able to work with them from their standpoint versus having them, feel like they've got to come to your standpoint or viewpoint. I don't know if I'm explaining that right, but, and I don't know, using the word ego, I don't know if that's necessarily the best thing, but where you're able to really see from the other person's point of view. I guess if I'm saying that right, and you might be able to explain that better in some way.
Tommy Thompson:
You're hitting on a couple of major points there. One of the most frustrating situations that the clients I talk to have is when they get into a counselor and in some ways they feel they're walking in as a template for that person that they're seeing, that they are already being looked at in a way of, okay, you have to fit this mold because you're seeing me for this issue and not being seen or heard or understood. And sometimes that's enough for people to go to one session, leave, say, well, that's obviously not for me, and then not try for weeks, months, or years, or even decades.
Jeff Williams:
So you can reach out to anybody else then, maybe. Right. Well, once again, in the studio with Tommy Thompson, owner of Sunrise Counseling, right here in Springfield, Illinois, and once again, how they can find you online.
Tommy Thompson:
And through the website, https://www.sunrisecounselingil.com/, and also through my name, Tommy Thompson, LCPC. If you put in Springfield, Illinois, that'll help too, and you'll find the main website, have a profile in Psychology Today through Headway as well. So, there's multiple ways to get a hold of me as well as look at the other clinicians that are part of Sunrise, see if I would be a good fit or if there's someone else that you feel that you'd be comfortable with.
Jeff Williams:
Right on. And so, you mentioned earlier where it can be anything from like a one-on-one to couples up to, like you said, families. So, you did mention, as you said, it seemed like there was a swing in people wanting to come back in versus online. Do you think that was somewhat coming out of pandemic sort of a thing?
Tommy Thompson:
Absolutely.
Jeff Williams:
Yeah.
Tommy Thompson:
There was a lot of complication there. Being able to see individuals online was a necessity. That before that point, seeing someone for virtual sessions was still very difficult. Insurance may not cover it. Individuals may not have access to it. You may not have had access to a confidential service to do virtual sessions. And then all that was a necessity. And there’s plenty of research out there showing that for individuals, individual therapy, couples therapy, virtually can be as effective as in person. It really does depend on the person and then also the counselor. If you're someone who disdains virtual counseling, We're not going to do too great. Yeah, exactly. If you're someone who is more comfortable with that, then the service is going to be of higher quality. The need was there. And so all of us, or most of us, had to adapt to that need. And yeah, you're right. There's a swing coming back where in some ways people are a little tired of looking at screens, wanting more of a connection, wanting a break from their regular life, even if virtual is an option. because of weather or sickness. More than not, I have everyone that I see that I'd rather come in.
Jeff Williams:
Yeah, no, it totally makes sense to me too, yeah, for sure. So thought I'd ask.
Tommy Thompson:
So, one other part that I wanted to add about starting the business, the private practice, is when I was on the fence, kind of building up to that idea and what needed to be done, My father-in-law, my wife's father, was wanting me to start a business. He is a business owner in China, had run a business there for most of his life, and was, at the time, passing away from cancer. And I really wanted me to start the business, wanted me to do that, and just wasn't in a place to do so while he was still with us when he passed. Everything else was set up and decided to go for it partially, in his honor. I'll leave a business card, and I'll show you when we're off the airs. In the middle of the picture, there's a Chinese symbol for his family's last name. So, it's always part of that going forward.
Jeff Williams:
I love it, love it. Very cool, very cool. Tommy Thompson, Sunrise Counseling, LCPC, a licensed clinical professional counselor. Thanks a lot for coming in the studio.
Tommy Thompson:
Of course, thank you for having me. A lot of fun.
Jeff Williams:
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