My education is of great importance to me, but so is my mental health. To insure my health both physically and mentally I participate in different hobbies. For my self-care I enjoy many different artistic outlets such as painting and drawing. I find a peace in the process of completing a piece of art which I am unable to find in any other outlet except being in tune with nature. I enjoy hiking to different locations and drawing nature while on these hikes. This combination of artistic expression collided with nature creates a special environment in which I am able to release stress, anxiety, and express myself. I share these passions with my son. We do many creative activities together. He is a wonderful, high energy boy who enjoys being out in nature as much as, if not more, than I do! We collect rocks on our hikes, then paint and decorate them to be randomly placed throughout the trails we frequently enjoy hiking. We try to spread our joy of art and nature to others through these keepsakes hidden throughout the nature trails we enjoy. We have also created a rock stand near our neighborhood in which we put painted rocks for the community to share and take. The rock stand has a sign we made together that states, "take a rock, leave a rock. Spread your joy and art!" Having a balance between motherhood, work, school and my social life has helped me maintain my hobbies and a happy life. Not having my identity lie under one portion of my life, but creating balance helps me have a well rounded and holistic identity. I am a mother. I am a student. I am an artist.

I heard a quote somewhere, I am unsure who is the author, but it stuck with me and still helps me to this day. They said, "mental health is not a destination, but a process. It is about the drive, not where you are going." I had to learn to sit with that and be comfortable with the fact that I have not yet met my destination. I had to learn to be able to ask myself, "Does this truly matter?" When asking myself this question, I have to make sure I remain in the present. "Does this truly matter, right now?" I had to stop myself from going into the spiral of a thousand different scenarios all at once. Acceptance of what I truly have control over and learning to live in the present - this has helped me made huge strides in my mental health journey. Mental health has shaped my goals drastically. I am going to school to earn my LPC so that I may become a licensed professional counselor and work with youth and adolescents. Growing up with mental health struggles without a support system motivated me to the helping field. I thought, "If I can make a difference in just one persons life, be a support to just one person, and/or walk with just one person through even an ounce of the struggles I faced in my youth- then I have made an impact." One ripple impacts the whole lake, even when we cannot see that impact. My hope is to be that stone that is thrown in the water to help individuals create their ripple effect in their own lives. My mental health and my views on mental health have helped shape my view of the world and permeate into my daily relationships. I feel as though, before I started my journey towards a more holistic health I had a more pessimistic outlook on life, interactions with others, and the world itself. My journey to heal mind, body, and spirit on a holistic level that involves my mental health, and not just physical health, has opened up more understanding of the world and others.

"The greatest good is what we do for one another" -Mother Teresa Helping others is restorative. Doing so not only helps those you are trying to impact, but also help those doing the help. Seeing the change that cam be made by just a small kindness is so rewarding, but also insightful. Having the knowledge that one small drop creates a ripple that extends beyond itself creates a profound impact in our daily lives because we operate on a holistic level. This means when the realization of our impact on other can make, even small interaction, it helps us operate with more empathy and awareness of others. My favorite way to help others is through small, meaningful, and intentional acts of kindness. This can take on a wide range and scope. Something as small as paying for the meal of another or giving a stranger a ride to their destination; these small acts can make a large impact. Another way I help others is by donating items such as clothing, food, and other necessities. My most enjoyable experiences with helping others have taken place during volunteer work with my community. Overall, I believe, that it is our responsibility to do our part when it comes to helping others by being empathetic and aware. To acknowledge others and our capacity for helping others. It is our responsibility to do our best to make a ripple of kindness wherever we go!

What brings me pure joys is being a mom to my son. This is my most valued and highest demanding job, but it is also the most rewarding. What motivates me as a mother is also what motivates me in my schooling and future career. I want to show my son that he can be anything he sets his mind to and that hard work gets you to your goals. To be able to reach my full potential would help me show those things to him and push me forward in my life. Happiness is what you make of yourself and what you make of your situation! There are many times in life we have to choose our happiness because our circumstances are hard, but we manifest and control our happiness! I try my best to find my peace and happiness in myself and my family so that no matter what the world throws at me, I won't get discouraged!

When I first started my journey towards becoming a Licensed Professional Counselor I did not complete my full program. I maintained good grades and achieved my M.A., but did not complete the certification necessary to be licensed. I had become a new mother, and while this was an amazing blessing, I was doing this on my own. The father became abusive after the birth of our son and I had to take action to better the environment I was in to ensure safety for not only myself, but now my son. This shift in my life was very difficult emotionally and physically. I had to return to work sooner than planned so that I could support my son and I alone. This put a stop to the continuation of my degree. I found it hard to balance full-time work, full-time school, and full-time single parenting. The cost of my education was too high for me to maintain and provide for my child alone. Although, I had a good support system I still struggled to maintain balance in my life. I am currently attending school again at Liberty University to finish the degree I started. I have been working hard and maintained good grades in all my courses so far. The cost of school has been a struggle and I have had to take on growing student loan debt in order to pay for my education. Having help to reduce my student loan debt would be greatly beneficial for my future and my ability to provide my son with the life I wish for him! I plan to use my degree and licensure to better not only my family's life, but the lives of other as I work with at risk youth through couseling and advocacy.

Self-care is important in the jobs and educational path I have chosen to pursue. Being in the helping field, compassion fatigue and burn out are often experienced. Being a single parent is also an emotionally high demanding job that I find rewarding and difficult at times. I thankfully have a wonderful support system to help me through my journey! I often struggle with taking time for myself and decompressing. Some ways of self-care that I have found most beneficial for me are meditation and art. I practice what I call, "Self-care Sunday." This doesn't have to always fall on a Sunday, but I have found that I most often can participate in "me time" on Sundays. For Self-care Sundays I take time out of my day to complete or start at least one art piece or drawing. I keep some of the art work, but others I give to friends and family. This is another portion of my self-care because I find happiness in giving and acts of service for others. I also take time during my self-care day to spend time with God and quietly check in with myself, feelings, thoughts, and more through meditation. I often sit in nature to do my meditation time. Having implemented this self-care day has decreased my anxiety and increased my emotional coping skills. It helps me be more positive and present when I am spending quality time with my son and during my work day. Overall, making time to care for myself and not just focus on the needs of others, has had a huge positive impact on my life and my motivation to keep going through hard times.

Being a single parent has many challenges and many rewards. As a mother of a high energy four year old, sometimes it is hard to keep up! Working full-time, continuing my education, and being a mom makes it difficult to find a good balance in life. I work hard to maintain a schedule with my son so that he feels like he is still my top priority and bonding time with his mother. The biggest challenge I experience is feeling as though I've spread myself too thin. Sometimes it is hard to complete work and maintain the quality time I desire with my family as well. The worry that is caused by the financial strain and demands that furthering my education presents can be overwhelming. I work hard with my financial coach to maintain my bidget and set goals. Through a program for single parents, Ripple of One, my son and I connect with the community and work towards building a better future for our family. My son and I live in a small town in South Carolina. My goal is to make an impact by helping at risk youth in my area through education and advocacy. The program I participate in is giving me important tools to use towards my educational and future goals. My experience working with children's homes and community youth programs will help me in my future career in mental health. With the state the world is in now we are seeing a rise in mental health issues and it is my passion to help provide services in my area. There are increasingly long waiting list for people to be seen by mental health professionals. This leaves individuals and families without the resources they need to help maintain their health! I hope that by completing my clinical mental health M.A program I can work towards opening my own practice in my area that will provide low income families with resources they need.

I am passionate about the youth of the world and our future. Being a mother has helped fuel this passion. Also, being a person who had to recover from the trauma of my childhood with little help along the way has motivated me to be an advocate for at risk youth. It is my passion to help provide the necessary tools in order to build upon the strength and positive traits that those who struggle with trauma hold inside. I want to help flame their fire and encourage them through their healing process in a way that supports independence and Autonomy.