We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Shamarah Hutchins. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Shamarah below.

Shamarah , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.

I always knew I wanted to become a doctor of something. My dream was to go to medical school and become a family practice doctor that specializes in addiction medicine because my goal was to help my parents with their addiction problems. I pursued the career of medicine and was accepted into a medical school. I had some academic troubles during medical school, never had academic troubles in my life. I was placed on probation and then I had to go to a committee where they determined my next steps. In that meeting one of the professor stated, “Maybe medicine is not for you, you should look for another career.” That moment I though my life had ended because my whole life i dreamed of being a doctor. I was lost but I then my life changed, I started to working with behaviors, psychology and loved everything about it. I looked into going to school for psychology and what careers I could have. I noticed I could become a doctor of psychology and pursue a career as a clinical psychologist. I then realized my passion of psychology and completed my doctorate degree in clinical psychology. Now, I can do all my passions in one: I’m a doctor (dream goal), I work with substance use disorders, I work with athletes and mental health, since my story comes from being an athlete who dealt with mental health issues and I own my own private practice. I also own the Melanated Minds Network where there is a holistic approach of focusing on mental health awareness, physical fitness and spiritual well-being. The moment of someone else determining my future made me realize my calling was bigger than just being a physician, I’m destined to become something greater as a doctor of psychology.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Dr. Shamarah J. Hutchins raised by her maternal grandmother spent majority of her career in the mental health field focusing her passion on substance use therapy, where she holds a Licensed Independent Chemical Dependency License (LICDC). Her first-hand experience with chemical dependency started with her parents and at 7 years old Dr. Hutchins told her mother, “I’m going to be a Doctor.” Defying all odds and determined not to become a statistic, Dr. Hutchins excelled in her academics graduating from Cleveland Heights High School in Cleveland Heights, Ohio and going on to complete undergrad at Wilberforce University, where she was a collegiate athlete, graduating Summa Cum Laude. Dr. Hutchins earned her Master’s in Psychology from Capella University and as she promised her mother, earned her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Walden University.​

I’m know as TheMindologist because I understand the dynamics of how the brain works and how to change negative thoughts into positive affirmations and make someone the best version of themselves.

Dr. Shamarah Jimmise took on the name TheMindologist when she discovered what her zone of genius was building her brand, self-awareness, and self-confidence. Dr. Shamarah Jimmise holds a doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology, but she also has the gift of helping women, entrepreneurs and athletes become the best version of themselves in life and learning. Dr. Shamarah Jimmise was once a woman who suffered from understanding where she belonged, she suffered from self-esteem and self-confidence problems. Dr. Shamarah Jimmise was once an athlete who dealt with mental health problems with no one to turn to for help. After a long journey of working and healing she now has the mindset that our history tells our story, but it is not our destination. Dr. Shamarah Jimmise is working hard to help others cultivate their mind in life and sports through mentoring, counseling, consulting & coaching TheMindologist Way.

My saying and what I’m most proud of is I’m changing the game of mental health in life and sports! I’m cultivating the Mind as TheMindologist!

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

Absolutely, YES! If I would have known the field of psychology in college or before I would have pursued this over medicine. I’m lucky I can work with peers in medicine but I found my passion, my purpose when I started down the road of psychology. I wake up with excitement because i can do something that comes natural to me and give the necessary treatment to those who need it from a mental health standpoint. I’m able to use all my gifts of marketing, therapy and speaking. I can return to my first love of sports but as a coach, mentor and psychologist to give athletes an outlet to understand mental health is something we all deal with and I’m a safe place to speak about it.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Understanding your values and ensuring those values are placed in the forefront of all your decisions. Nothing should take from what you believe in. Values are the essential foundation for maintaining who you are. Understanding that everyone has personal issues but in order to maintain a team you have to be consistent, you have to lead by example and you have to have the team and the company best interest, not just your own.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.serenecounselingandwellness.com
• Instagram: Themindologist
• Facebook: THeMindologist
• Linkedin: Shamarah Thomas-Hutchins
• Twitter: TheMindologist
• Youtube: TheSereneStandard
• Other: Melanated Minds Network: http://melanatedminds.mn.co Booking for TheMindologist: https://Linktr.ee/TheMindologist