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

Dr. Stacia’, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear the backstory of how you established your own practice.

I vividly recall announcing my intentions to my classmates in graduate school of planning to open a private practice as a licensed professional counselor. An older student in the back scoffed and implied I should rethink my plans because black people don’t go to counseling. I turned in my seat to face him directly and said some thing to the effect that his assumptions have nothing to do with my intent to educate my community on the value of counseling and to my services to communities where services were limited. This was the first of many naysayers when I launched in a time where there were very few resources about opening and sustaining a private practice.

While the mistakes I have made are many, I am now in a place where I can help new clinicians set up their practices to avoid many of the pitfalls I never knew existed. The industry has evolved and we need a continuous addition of skilled and wise clinicians to manage the shift in acceptance of mental health services. It is a field that continues to grow as more and more people realize just how important it is to understand how our thoughts and our feelings impact our lives.

For new clinicians opening a private practice, I tell them to include in their budget monies for an accountant, an attorney, and a business coach. These three professional expenses will directly impact how well their practice is managed.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

When people ask me how I chose the psychology field, I answer with a smile from deep within because I know I’ve healed from the circumstances that pushed me to seek answers so long ago. My mother and I were having one of our many arguments when I ran to the living room for escape. The living room was my escape because we had rows and rows of books on the shelves. My father left his college textbooks after the divorce so I would often look at the books as a way to feel closer to him between our weekly visits. On this day that my mother and I were arguing, I saw a psychology book and remembered him telling me it was the study of how people think and behave. When I opened the book, I haphazardly turned it to the middle and landed on the page that had dysfunction in bold, black letters. As I read the description, I realized it was talking about my mother and I. I wanted to learn more so I kept reading even after that day. I eventually read the book even though I did not understand everything that I saw. I was sold after that on psychology. It helped me understand there was a way to change the experiences I was having and I knew I could other people do the same.

I’ve owned and operated a private practice in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex for over 20 years. It’s been large and it has been small. It has afforded me the opportunity to work with hundreds of other professionals in the field. At last calculation about 2 years ago, we had serviced about 17,000 people. Through my practice, I have had amazing opportunities stemming from the mental health field.

Additionally, I have a strategy program for professional women called “The Emotionality of Success.” The premise of the program is helping women understand that success expands beyond the scholarly accolades needed to acquire success. We need to also address the emotions necessary to attain and sustain the levels of success being achieved. The program is comprehensive in that the curriculum expands across four core components which I’ve identified as quadrants; Relationships, Professional, Self-Care, and Spiritual.

Personally, I have been married for 29 years to this great guy who has a knack for putting up with my high energy and never ending ideas. We raised two children and our nephew while caring for my mother. We are a faith filled family who recognizes Jesus as our personal savior. In my free time, I am more of a creative than a scholar. I enjoy gardening, web designing, and building small projects.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

Professionally, the best investment I’ve made is securing the services of professional coaching. My first exposure to a professional coach was through a small business competition. It was integrated into the process as we progressed through the program as a finalist. While I saw the value of the information I learned, I simply could not fathom how I would spend the money on paying for the services after I finished the competition. However, years later, I sacrificed some items and invested in a professional coach. That was the best decision I made for several reasons. The first reason is the coach is not emotionally invested in my work and can see what I need to from a different lens. The second reason is an awareness that I do not know everything and I can not stay abreast of everything that is happening inside and outside of the industry. The third reason is the elevation in thought. There is some truth to spending time with others who have similar energy and mindsets as yourself.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I believe my authenticity has been one of the reasons I’ve sustained in the field beyond the counseling office. Within the counseling office, I believe it is my consistency. The perspective I share with my clients is to incorporate mental health services as a component of their health care regimen just as they do other areas; medical, dental, and optometry. Therefore, consider using it beyond your crisis moment and integrate it into your lifestyle. This helps to remove some of the stigma of going to therapy and instead view it as health care.

In terms of my public persona, I have a “downhome” approach to talking about mental health. Taking the time to move the information from the classroom and into living rooms, dining rooms, and other public places helps others to shed the mystery of treatment. For too long, counseling was believed to be an elitist resources keeping it beyond reach for others who benefit from the services across all demographics.

The space I am in now affords me repeated opportunities to share with mass audiences about topics spanning every industry and tying it to our mental health. I take those opportunities with boldness and confidence because that appearance may help one person understand that they need help and it is available.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://staciaalexander.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstaciaalexander/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrStaciaAlexander/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drstaciaalexander/
• Twitter: @drstaciaalexander
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyc8vidh0D4TeeGnIAy83AA
• Other: Tiktok: @drstaciaalexander

Image Credits
Headshot – Ada Lee Photography Candid shot – Kenisha Elaine Photography