Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ashley Dooley. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ashley, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Looking back at internships and apprenticeships can be interesting, because there is so much variety in people’s experiences – and often those experiences inform our own leadership style. Do you have an interesting story from that stage of your career that you can share with us?

My internship experience has been amazing. I struggled finding a place to do it, and I recalled a conversation I had with a previous coworker who told me if I had any issues finding a location to call her. I called her and within a couple of days I had a spot! The relief I felt was indescribable, as I was starting to panic. There’s such a time crunch with everything! My supervisor, Dr. Kristen Marlowe is truly gifted at her craft, and being able to learn from her and taking her knowledge and wisdom to carry with me through my career is such a wonderful blessing! Being a private practice, I have been given a unique opportunity to experience a multitude of mental health clients, of all ages, genders, etc. it’s truly been an amazing and extremely rewarding experience.

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

I thought for a long time I wanted to be an attorney, so that I could help people, but the more I considered that avenue the more I realized that wasn’t the type of help I wanted to give. Counselors and therapists are also referred to as helpers, so it only made sense that this was my true calling. I experienced some tough things as a child, and I was blessed and fortunate enough to receive the help and support necessary to grow from my pain. I just want to pay that forward to others now, and hope that my personal experience will make me more empathetic and understanding toward my clients.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

As I mentioned before, I’ve had my own struggles. Experiencing my own trauma and life experiences that allowed me the privilege to be on the other side of the chair allows me to be truly empathetic and understanding toward my clients. As a young child I suffered at the hands of a family friend/neighbor and struggled with PTSD, as a result of that and other traumatic incidents. Going through certain therapeutic processes allowed me to grow, become stronger and ultimately become the person I am today. My friends and family have been an amazing support system, as well, and I wouldn’t be where I am without a combination of efforts from all parties named here.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Bringing my own story to every conversation. I think at one point in life I felt so angry and depressed that I kind of made it my mission to never be silenced again. In doing so I would often find myself talking about my own issues rather than listening to friends and family, and when reflecting on one of my first client sessions (with the help of my professor) I found how damaging that was. I was angry at myself for how the session went, but took that as a learning experience to grow from and do better, going forward.

Contact Info:

• Other: I am on PsychologyToday, but as a counselor we don’t share our personal platforms (as a general rule) I am considering setting up business accounts to, but have not done that, as of now