Finding Freedom in Healing: The Importance of a Social Justice Framework in Empowerment

By understanding the foundations of our society, we understand that this trauma has shifted DNA, familial patterns, mental health, societal roles, and daily experiences. Understanding the history and the foundations of our society is necessary to understand the complex ways in which these formative actions impact mental health. The dance of injustice has been a long narrative in this country and has shaped the mental health of a people.

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How the Beauty Shop Can Be a Form of Therapy for Black Women

What originally began as a brief visit quickly became a sister circle where vulnerability and support converged to create a healing experience none of us knew we needed. We spent the next several hours, yes hours, discussing relationships (familial and romantic), trauma, forgiveness, self-worth, and other topics important to women.

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Guest Post: Navigating Dating While Mentally Ill by Kiana Blake-Chung

I recently revealed on my popular Instagram reel show: Search for Serotonin that I went on a date. People in my DMs congratulated me and said they were proud of me for taking this step. I thought it was funny all the fuss people made, but I had been very vocal about not trusting anyone ever again and remaining single to protect myself. And now here I am, allowing a man to give me butterflies.

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When Your Dealing with Depression and Ensuring Your University Education

As a full-time student and international student dealing with depression and anxiety daily, it is a struggle, primarily when you continually deal with hardships: homesickness, social difference, and all-around stress. Sometimes there are difficulties within people. Students who have experienced anxiousness or depressed feelings should know that they are not alone. It merely is not uncommon to feel this way—in particular, being involved in the university community.

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I Stand with Naomi Osaka

More than ever, individuals are beginning to reclaim their power and understand the importance of personal wellness and caring for one’s mental health. This is especially important for Black women, as we are often expected to go above and beyond in the workplace. We are seen as most useful because of our labor, and our humanity is rarely taken into account.

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Take Good Care of Yourself: Lessons from "Your Turn: How to Be an Adult" by Julie Lythcott-Haims

Writing any self-help book is an ambitious feat, but what Julie Lythcott-Haims has delivered in “Your Turn to be an Adult” takes a huge bite out of a broad and existential topic, “what does it mean to be an adult?” I’m 29 and every day, I observe my friends who are all around the same age, wrestle with the tough breaks of adulthood or enjoy its glorious moments, whether it’s getting married and having a baby or buying your first home.

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Subtle Signs of Depression You Might Miss (And How to Fight Back)

Depression takes time to heal and the journey is not linear, it’s full of peaks and valleys that can threaten the stability of your life, your work, and your relationships. As someone who lives with depression, I have to continually monitor my mind and body as well as shift my perspective on what’s “normal” to what’s healthy for me as an individual. Over the years, I’ve noticed a few telltale warning signs that my depression may not be in check.

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Mental Health Tips for Empaths (Video + Blog)

To me, “sensitive” means that I feel deeply, that I’m observant, and that I have a keen sense of the emotional and mental states of others, detecting dishonesty, bad vibes, or genuine love and compassion, naturally and with ease. I never really thought much about how being a Highly Sensitive Person might be affecting me or my mental health, but one day, a friend asked if it had ever occurred to me that I might be an empath.

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Suicide Prevention Week and My Personal Story

When someone dies by suicide, everyone wonders “Why? How did it come to this?” and I understand that. It’s hard to conceive of a pain so great that it makes you not want to live anymore, but whether you’ve ever been there or not, it’s important to know that this place exists. It’s real and to judge a person who has been there as “weak” or “selfish” just shows that the level of judgment and hate that sent the person to that dark place to begin with is real and extremely problematic.

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How to Maintain Your Mental Health During Times of Crisis and Trauma

Like you, the last four months of my life have been completely turned upside down. I was used to waking up in the morning, my husband and I getting our infant ready for daycare, and then all of us quickly leaving the house. After a long day, we would return home, perform our evening routines and then spend some time together before we do it all over again the next day. Those days were long but it was our routine and I was used to the rapid pace of our life.

March was when everything started to look different.

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Healing from Family Traumas and Generational Curses

I was always sort of hiding how everyone in my family didn’t get along. How every gathering turned into an argument until we stopped gathering altogether. How jealousy and resentment ran rampant amongst the different age groups. It wasn’t until I was thirteen and in high school that I realized more families had similar issues to mine than I thought.

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