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

Asha, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you share a story about the kindest thing someone has done for you and why it mattered so much or was so meaningful to you?

The kindest thing someone has ever done for me was become my mentor. At the age of 18, I recall a moment where I felt so lost as a college freshman. At the time, I was in a pre-pharmacy program, deciding whether or not I had genuine interest in the field. I later figured out that my interest was no longer in that field but I was also not sure what career field interested me. I was already taking a few elective courses at the time with one of them being a general psychology course. I remember going home that Winter Break realizing that my interest was actually in the mental health field. The dilemma with that was that I did not know of any counselors personally or professionally that could provide me insight into the field. So I remember, getting on my laptop and searching for counselors in my area. At that time, only one private practice result showed up on the search engine. I remember reaching out to them, asking if I could job shadow. After explaining my situation, they decided to allow me to shadow the owner of the practice for a day. After she explained the limitations of our meeting due to HIPAA and the Codes of Ethics, I recall us having discussions about her professional experience and her experience as a private practitioner. At the end of our meeting, we had come to a conclusion that we could further our professional relationship by her becoming my mentor. To this day, I still have her as my mentor and she has also become a cherished friend. I always look back and reflect on the day I felt so confused as an 18 year old trying to navigate the complexities of young adulthood and how grateful I am to have her assistance throughout this journey.

Asha, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a mental health clinician currently serving the Metro East St. Louis area and the state of Illinois. I have a master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Capella University. My primary focus is working with adolescents and adults. I specialize in Perinatal or Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD), academic and work-related stress, bullying, racial trauma, life transitions, depression, and anxiety, I am certified in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and trained in Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT). I am most proud of my work with young adults as they navigate the transitional period where they are excited about gaining their independence as adults but they are also navigating their thoughts and feelings around some of the challenges that come with young adulthood. I’ve demonstrated my interest in this population through my previous role as a case manager for the young adult population and my current experience working with college students.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

A lesson that I had to unlearn was the idea that it was okay to not share my feelings with others. I remember at a young age, not feeling comfortable enough to express myself. I was often labeled as the shy or quiet kid. When in reality, I had not learned how to be comfortable and confident enough in myself to be vulnerable with others. As I’ve gotten older, I realized that this narrative was unhealthy and did not serve me. So, I’ve consistently worked on unlearning this idea throughout the years because operating as if I am always okay only lead to feelings of loneliness and thoughts of being misunderstood. So as I’ve navigated this, I’ve taught my client’s how to show up authentically and not to dim their lights due to lack of confidence or insecurity. What I’ve learned is that when we embrace the things that we are often insecure about, it can actually free another person from the insecurities they may hold about themselves.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

My level of resilience is illustrated through my journey throughout motherhood. I am currently the mother of two beautiful little girls. I had my oldest daughter the year after obtaining my undergraduate degree and I had my second daughter my last semester of graduate school. With already being a mother when entering graduate school, I had to learn how to navigate the challenges of being a full-time employee, a full-time graduate student, and a mother. I recall one of the challenges I experienced during this time included, not having child care assistance in the evenings when I would get off work and have to take care of my daughter. The evenings became a balancing act as I would make sure to schedule time for giving her my undivided attention and also scheduling time for completing coursework. Often my daughter would try closing my laptop during the times I had to complete coursework, which, let’s just say I often kept my cursor on the ‘save’ button when she was around. Later in my graduate degree program, I became pregnant with my second child. This part of my journey forced me to continually be reminded of my personal and professional values and how one value had an incredibly positive effect on the other. Personally, I held the value of my family being my top priority, while professionally, I wanted a career that not only provided impact to the community but also provided me with some level of financial stability. During this time, I recall struggling with thoughts of taking a break from school to focus solely on my family since I was still navigating several roles. What helped me stay motivated to complete the graduate degree program was the realization that obtaining this degree would not only positively impact my life but also my family. So, with that knowledge, I persisted and pushed through and was able to complete my graduate degree program 6 months after giving birth to my youngest daughter.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashaa_clark/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashaaeclark/

Image Credits
Kevin Hansome