We recently connected with Christina Valladares and have shared our conversation below.

Christina , appreciate you joining us today. Is there a heartwarming story from your career that you look back on?

One of my earliest memories as a little girl in private Catholic school was a teacher slamming her hand on my desk and yelling “pay attention!” This happened more often than I would like to remember. My inability to focus only got worse as I entered my teen and adulthood. I was seen as “spacey,” forgetful always losing items, messy, too emotional, inconsistent and lazy… When I first became a language arts middle school teacher right after finishing my bachelor in English, it did not come without its challenges. However, I began to notice something very familiar in some of my students that reminded me of them. While the boys acted out their hyperactivity by constantly talking and getting out of their seat, it was the quiet girl who appeared withdrawn and in a daze that caught my attention. She was still, but “spaced out,” disorganized, had poor self-esteem. Yet, she was insightful, sensitive, creative, expressive in her writing and in a world of her own. She was me!
So many of my students were attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and didn’t even know it, neither did I.
As the years passed in teaching (a little over ten), I felt that I was being called to do something more to help not only that little girl in the back of the classroom, but the countless children experiencing anxiety, poor self-esteem, grief and numerous mental health issues.

Christina , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

In 2015, I took and took out more than $50,000 in student loans to earn a Masters in Psychology with the intent of becoming a mental health therapist while continuing to work as a middle school teacher. Into my second semester in the Masters program, my grandmother passed away only to be followed by the unexpected death of my father five months later. I was devastated and thought I just didn’t have the strength to keep going, but I kept pushing because that’s what my father and grandma would want me to do.

In 2018, I graduated with a Masters in Psychology. While I suspected I had ADHD, I had never received an official diagnosis. However, I knew I had to receive a formal evaluation in an effort to better understand myself and help others with their mental health needs. To receive an official diagnosis made all the difference in the world. Finally, I had a name for all the symptoms I struggled with all my life. It was a combination of relief, anger (how did they miss this?), sadness (if only I would have gotten help soon) and relief. I felt relief to know that there wasn’t something wrong with me, that so many people my age, especially women who commonly went undiagnosed as girls. In fact, the average age of women to be diagnosed with ADHD is 36-38. I was 38 years old. Like many women who were diagnosed late in life with ADHD, I struggled with the notion that things in my life could have been different had I received help sooner. While I can’t have those years back, I have made it my purpose to help children in the school system (the front lines of mental health) not be ashamed or their ADHD or other mental health conditions. Instead, I work to help them find the purpose and strength in what they once perceived weaknesses (always a work in process in myself as well). I may not be able to take back time, but I can give that time meaning by helping the next generation of children receive the help my generation never got.

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

That by giving my struggles and “lost time” meaning and purpose, I can find peace in it now helping children and adults with mental health (especially ADHD). Everything I struggled with led me to my life purpose.

If you could go back in time, do you think you would have chosen a different profession or specialty?

Yes, I would because I realize now as a mental health therapist, I’m living my purpose as a healer. I knew that I did not want to stay in teaching, but I knew it had something to do with the school system. Many parents (especially in low-income families) don’t understand mental health conditions such as ADHD, anxiety, depression, etc. It’s up to people like me to help me identify and treat these children.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @behappy_therapy
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-marie-valladares-22aa24126/

Image Credits
@steffie.mariephotography