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

Alea, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear stories from your time in school/training/etc.

Throughout my master’s program I exemplified tenacity, motivation, and immense dedication to becoming a mental health professional. The path to licensure as a licensed mental health professional in California requires the enrollment and completion of a masters program at an accredited university, practicum, and 3,000 hours of supervised work experience in the field of mental health. I was so fascinated by the field of mental health and I learned more in my graduate studies that grew my curiosity and passion. One of the most captivating moments in my educational experience was learning about diagnosis and treatment. I was assigned a complex clinical vignette to present on for this section of course work. My presentation was a diagnosis of a character with schizophrenia, explaining the symptoms and the reasoning behind my diagnosis. The movement of my hands and my exaggeration presented by a drive of passion, along with my visual representative, kept the audience captive. I quickly learned how passionate I was about mental health and those suffering from mental illness. From that moment on I pursued my education and career path with vigor and passion. Graduate school taught me that anything I pursued thereafter should be built off of that same passion. This would include my internship experiences, work, and building my own practice. Through my training experiences I was privileged to have the opportunity to serve underserved communities and work with those diagnosed with a severe and persistent mental illness and it was through those hands on experiences that I began evolving as a Clinician.

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?

I have 20 years of experience working in mental health. I have worked providing direct clinical services to include diagnosis and treatment, managing mental health programs, supervising multidisciplinary teams, and managing regional adult mental health programs with 100 or more employees. I am a subject matter expert in mental health, specifically in the diagnosis and treatment of severe persistent mental illness, forensic mental health, and eating disorders. My target population of focus are adults. My clinical orientation is in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT-including trauma focused), dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), and psychodynamic therapy . In my current position as a Mental Health Administrator I perform the full scope of administrative and operational responsibilities for a large, regional, mental health program responsible for adults within an assigned geographic area. I develop, implement, administer, and maintain the standards for treatment and services of the largest, most comprehensive, mental health programs with Department-wide responsibilities. I also maintain a private practice and provide treatment services addressing the unique needs of those with mild, moderate, and severe mental illness. What sets me apart from others is my vast experience in forensics collaborating with the judicial system and county mental health departments and specialized training in eating disorders with the The International Association Of Eating Disorders Professionals Foundation. It is rare to find minority licensed professionals who specialize in the treatment of eating disorders. I am most proud of choosing to expand my specialization in this area to diversify the provider selection and also shed light on eating disorders and disordered eating in minority communities. I recently published CBT “Me” for Eating Disorders and Disordered eating to assist with providing psychoeducation on eating disorders and reducing the stigma.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

The best advice I can provide in managing teams is to endorse a trauma informed perspective and approach. The past two years have been incredibly difficult for people as we’ve faced Covid, racial violence, political upheaval, environmental disasters, war, and more. Building awareness and generating buy-in for a trauma-informed approach; has helped me as a leader to support a culture of staff wellness; hire a workforce that embodies the values of trauma-informed care; and create a safe physical, social, and emotional environment not only for clients but staff as well. The reality is that trauma is not new in the workforce and it is not going away. The Great Resignation has shown that employees have different expectations of their organizations than they did a few years ago. They desire purpose and connection, and they want to be seen. When leaders create and implement policies that effect tangible forms of support we see a rise in morale, team orientation, and overall wellness.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

Working collaboratively with interdisciplinary teams has been a corner stone to my success in the mental health field. In mental health we cannot treat the individual alone. As a direct service provider we are interdependent on the role of other service providers to include psychiatrist, case mangers, peer support specialist, physical health providers etc. We must address patient care from a wholistic place treating the whole person not fragments of the person. I highly recommend a collaborative approach in the treatment of mental health disorders. Team collaboration is beneficial at all levels of care and in the treatment of psychiatric illnesses.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.aleajacksonpsychotherapist.com
• Instagram: @aleapsychd4therapy
• Facebook: Alea Jackson M.S., LMFT