*whispers* help

Asking for help....is much easier said than done

After starting my fund raising campaign, I found out that May actually happens to be Mental Health Awareness Month which is fantastic.

I decided I was going to make it my business to spread as much knowledge and awareness as I could. My intents for this very first “awareness” blog was to talk about self care because it is essential to overall good mental health...

Then I realized something that can truly serve as a barrier to services and that's being able to ask for help. I know this is a struggle for some people because it is a personal struggle I deal with. Any of my family and friends will tell you, I RARELY ask for help, especially if I feel like I know “what to do.”

Some might think it is a positive trait to be so self sufficient and while that trait does have benefits, it also comes along with risks. It at times takes me longer to accomplish things and I don't always get the optimal results. Some times I miss out on stuff (like work out classes this week...Big Red has been out of commission since last Saturday and as such, I’ve missed all my classes because I didn't want to inconvenience anyone by having to drop me off and pick me up.)

The point is, I often struggle with asking for assistance and while in my day to day life this does not tend to have a major impact, I've noticed that many people take this same stance when it comes to getting assistance with mental health concerns. I've had so many clients tell me that it was extremely difficult to come in and ask for assistance, even though the whole purpose of my profession is to provide said assistance.

Western society in particular encourages a very individualistic way of thinking which I believe encourages the idea that it is shameful to ask for assistance. Many of us find ourselves in the position where we are told that getting help makes us less of a person. We keep things buried inside and we fail to reach our potential because we aren’t fully utilizing the resources that are available to us...

The reality of the situation is there are some instances where we require assistance from other people (whether we want to admit it or not.) It's not enough to simply admit that one needs help, you also must get your help from the correct source if it is to be useful to you. I've often heard people say “I don't need a therapist I have (insert trusted friend, family member etc.) here.

When it comes to mental health, sometimes a professional is needed. For instance, as much as your friend may know about muscles and joints, if your bones are broken, you go and get assistance from a professional. It's one thing to cheer a friend up when they are feeling a little blue, but it's another thing to try and cheer up a friend who has locked themselves in a room for two weeks because they are extremely depressed.

My job is not simply “talking to people about their problems”, my job is to help people get a better picture of themselves so that they can make decisions that will lead to fulfilling lives. As a trained and licensed therapist, I have taught myself how to minimize the impact of my emotions on my interactions with my clients. I give unbiased advice regardless of my own personal convictions and allow my clients to make their own decisions. In addition, I am bound by HIPPA guidelines and as such can not divulge any of the information that you share with me without your prior consent.

Everyone could benefit from an unbiased person who is both legally and ethically bound to confidentiality. This is not something that I could say about any of my friends or family (though I love and appreciate them dearly.) Additionally, because our friends and family tend to “know each other” it is a lot more likely that they will be tempted to spill compared to a therapist. As a therapist, you would see me 2-4 times a month and that's it. I wouldn't be at your home, at your workplace or at your school. You don't have to worry about me getting intoxicated at the family reunion and accidentally revealing your darkest secrets.

But seriously

I know there are people who endure tragedies and never get a chance to talk to people about them. They think that they are OK, but in reality every experience you have impacts the way that you go through life. Burying secrets within yourself does not make them go away; when people try to “hold things in” what often happens is the undue stress on the psyche “forces” the emotion out in other ways. Sometimes it's anger, sometimes it's depression and sometimes it's trouble in interpersonal relationships.

When you fail to process emotions and situations, it makes it more likely that you will need a therapist because when things get to the point where you are not in control of your emotions, it is doubtful that advice from a friend will have a marked impact. Again, this isn't to say that friends aren't important, it's just that you have to know when you need a friend and when you need professional assistance.

One of the goals that I have as a therapist is to make it easier for people to both identify when they need help and feel more comfortable asking for it. I plan to do this by spreading as much knowledge about mental health as possible to normalize the subject. Eventually, I want people to be able to say “I have an appointment with the therapist” as easily as they can say I have an appointment to get my nails done.

I want to provide mobile therapy services to help improve access to mental health services in my community. Help me help people to help themselves by checking out my fund-raising campaign below!!

http://www.gofundme.com/8g6bf0

-Atiya

Why Collect Donations??

When you believe in something strongly and whole-hardheartedly, I believe it's only natural to want to share it with the world. I want to make it my business to touch as many lives as possible doing something that I actually happen to be very good at(and people need.)

Mental illness is REAL. By creating a gofund me campaign, I'm not just raising money for a van, I'm raising awareness to mental health. I also hope to inspire other therapists to provide similar services as transportation can be a major barrier to overall good health. In addition, lack of convenience can also be a barrier to good health and this is an obstacle that my campaign could help to overcome.

I am not, nor have I ever been concerned with making a lot of money. I do know my worth but I'm not completely money driven. I share my idea because I WANT other people to copy it. I WANT other people to be inspired by it and create even better ideas that can help battle mental health in our communities.

If I simply “raised the money on my own” my idea would just be a good one. By reaching out and trying to gather donations, my idea becomes a GREAT one. Supporting me supports the idea that we as humans need to be more connected as a whole. I want to encourage people to work together for a common cause. Ideally, I'd like to have 4,500 people all donate a dollar because that means that 4,500 people are aware of the desperate need of mental health services in our communities. People who are aware can spread awareness to others and the cycle will continue.

Perhaps by seeing me do something, I can inspire someone else to get more involved in THEIR community. I fully intend on being the change I want to see. I want to live in a world where people care about their neighbors be they neighboring homes, states or countries. I plan on doing whatever I can to encourage an environment where humans feel connected to their fellow humans.

I want to make something VERY clear. I am not trying to raise money simply because I quit my job. I'm GOING to continue to work. I will be working UNTIL this happens. I am a LICENSED clinician so just because I quit working as a therapist for a certain company does not mean I have quit being a therapist. As a licensed clinician, I am qualified to provide mental health services to any person who deems me to be a fit provider. The client base is already there and I will seek them out.

When I came to Nashville, I got a job because I was looking to learn more about my community and I wanted to get a good feel for how the community operated. I could have very easily just handed out business cards and immediately went into private practice; I chose not to because I wanted to learn. Some wondered why I even worked there BECAUSE everyone knew that I was licensed and could rather easily go into practice on my own.

I know I could go the traditional route and save money or borrow from a bank but again that would not bring enough ATTENTION to what I am doing. I have CHOSEN this path because I want to start a movement...

Please if you can check out the link below

http://www.gofundme.com/8g6bf0

Help me Help the community!

Allow me to introduce myself

My name is Atiya and I am 27 years old. All my childhood life I wanted to be a teacher...I really was a "nerd" growing up! I truly enjoyed things like playing school and books were my best friends. My mom said that she used to have to force me outside and when I did go, I took books and a blanket...lol (i think there are pictures to confirm this). I vividly remember doing workbooks at home(and enjoying it) and also playing school with my cousin Nakia (I liked being the student).

When I was 10 years old, I saw a movie called Harriet the Spy (Its an awesome movie you should check it out if you haven’t seen it btw) In one part of the movie, she was forced to see what I believe was a child psychologist. He sat down with her and asked her about her feelings and his room was filled with games and toys. That was the day I changed my mind about what I wanted to be. I decided that I wanted to be a Therapist, I wanted to talk to people about their issues for a living.

I could go on and on about what happened in the 17 years that I transpired between that decision and now but long story short, I earned a couple degrees, got married, moved away all while meeting some fantastic people along the way. So fast forward to today...Or yesterday rather. I quit my job.

After spending an entire hour dreading going to work, I realized that I had laid in the bed feeling like that too many times before going to work....especially since the unexpected suicide of my former supervisor about a month ago. As I sat pondering as to whether or not I really wanted to live the rest of my life like that, I did what many people do when they're looking for advice...I called my mommy.

I told her I think I want to quit my job...and she basically said go for it! So with no back up plan, no next step, I walked into my supervisor's office and told her I quit. That is like a SUPER huge deal for me because as my family friends will tell you....I'm the poster child for responsible decisions.

I still totally want to do therapy but I have a few other talents too. As I was pondering with my husband as to what I wanted to do next, I came up with a fantastic idea...and that brings me to the purpose of this message. I want to provide therapy for people who need it but not at the expense of changing myself as a person. There's no other way to say it...I don't shop at Walmart because I don’t support who they are as a corporation...and somehow I found myself working at the Walmart of mental health. I do not want to live my life in contrast to my beliefs so that I can “make a living.”

But I need your help to do it. I want to provide therapy for people where I can come to them and we can meet on site in a van. That way people who have trouble with transportation can still receive the psychotherapy services that they need. Also, for people who don’t have the time during their day to go and meet with their therapist, a mobile therapy service could meet them where they eat lunch.

The van would provide people with a safe, comfortable space to address their mental health concerns with qualified providers at a time and place that is convenient for them. I know some people have concerns about confidentiality and people being seen but I plan to utilize an unlabeled van and on the inside, you would never know you were in a van. Now I know some of you are thinking “why should I help her?” Here's 3 reasons why:

1. Anyone who knows me knows that I make it my business to support small business especially community business. By supporting me, you will not only be supporting me, you will be helping me to support small business. I plan to give back to the community by donating advertising spaces to the different businesses in my community instead of advertising myself on the van. Also, if a person would happen to be seen getting into the van, it would further protect their confidentiality because it would not indicate that it was a mental health van. I will also use the money I earn providing therapy to continue to support the small businesses in my community. 
2. I'm not your “typical therapist” and what I mean by that is this:  I don't believe in labeling people and doping them up. If it weren't for insurance requirements, I honestly wouldn't diagnose at all. I believe in respect for people their thoughts and differences. The types of therapy services I provide focus on helping people to appreciate the person who they are and cope with the symptoms they have. Though I believe that some people can benefit from medication, I do not/am not trained to prescribe it and I firmly believe that many mental health concerns can be appropriately addressed with psychotherapy alone. My primary focus is helping people to make sure that the behaviors they are displaying are lining up with the outcomes they seek.
3. Once I am more established as a private clinician, it is a personal goal of mine to develop a barter system so that people in need of mental health services will be able to offer goods/services in exchange for treatment. This would be done instead of requiring people to pay money or utilize insurance benefits.This way, no one is prevented from having access to beneficial services that they may need. Eventually, this will help lay the groundwork for communities that are more sustainable. 

I just want to live out my dreams...and they say you never know what help you can get until you ask for it. I never ask for help, but I also never quit my job either soooo there's kinda a first time for everything right? I wrote this blog to give people some quick background information because I'm starting a fund-raising page to make this happen. I have not been blogging lately but I also plan to do a series of personal “get to know me better blogs” for anyone who may be interested in knowing more about me...I do have a lot of free time now...

Please check out my fundraising site at http://www.gofundme.com/8g6bfo