Today we’d like to introduce you to Angela M Mitchell

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?

Whew, anytime I’m asked this question I sometimes don’t know where to start! I have been an entrepreneur for around thirteen years, and have started quite a few brands since 2011! I’ve done everything from extreme couponing to custom cakes, but what I’m most proud of is my most recent venture, but we’ll get there in a few minutes.

So, around five, maybe six years ago, I was really struggling with my mental and emotional health. I was barely sleeping, always eating, and I had gained a ton of weight! I would have to force myself to get out of bed every day, and there were many times when I couldn’t get up at all. I really was in one of the darkest places I think I had ever been in up until that point in my life, and I was ready to just give up.

When I say that I hated my life, I mean just that. I hated the way I looked, where I lived, where I worked, and the sorry-ass relationship I was in. To be completely honest, I didn’t know if I wanted to be on this earth anymore because I was beyond miserable and couldn’t figure out how to get out of that space. I felt so sorry for myself and all I could think about was just saying fuck it and putting myself out of my misery.

I couldn’t show up in my business, (at that time I was running a senior care service), or my relationships. and of course that caused my finances to suffer, which only added to the weight that I felt daily. I didn’t know why I would have long periods of low and depressive moods, while other times, I was so full of energy that I thought I could take on the world. I had no idea what it meant to have bipolar depression, and I never considered that I could be suffering from such a serious mental health disorder. All I knew was that I felt like I was drowning and that I had to save myself from myself.

That’s what bipolar depression feels like, and it sometimes seems as if you can’t climb out of the dark tunnel or deep, dark waters, and you can’t see a way out. I was reaching for the light, but I could never get there, and for most of my adult life I had been in survival mode so that added to the severity of my breakdown. I had my life not understanding the why behind my jumbled thoughts and severe mood swings and never thought to check my mental health status. I was so scared of what other folks would say because I am always the strong one, the one who stands on her her and holds it all together. I was so wrong though, and I thank The Most High for the strength to get back up!

Then, I realized I had to completely change my mindset, and I mean about everything! Yes, I know it’s cliche, and that’s a big buzzword now, but those are some of the truest words ever spoken. The reality was that I was not going to get better until I addressed those feelings, I was tired of feeling hopeless and trapped and decided to talk to my doctor. I started counseling and regained clarity and got my confidence back slowly. A few months later, right at the start of 2020, I decided to share my story, part of it at least, as a chapter in an anthology, and as they say, the rest is history.

I always loved writing and have always been good at it so when the opportunity came around I dove in head first! It’s around the end of 2020 that Out of The Shadows was born and it would later evolve into Back To Her. The original name was so fitting because that’s exactly where I was coming from, out of the shadows of mental health struggles and daily life with mood disorders.

Even though I was terrified, uncomfortable, overweight, and unsure of myself, I started posting on social media about what I was doing and how the process was going. I talked about my chapter, shared pictures from my photo shoot, and put myself out there! As much as I hated it, all my efforts started to pay off and I began getting all kinds of messages on social media from women all over the world, some as far away as Australia, The United Kindom, and Jamaica. I would share bits and pieces of my life and all the shit I had been through, and they all wanted to know how I changed my life so drastically in such a short amount of time.

When I first started the Facebook group, I had an idea but not much else, no structure, no plan, and no real direction. But, I knew I wanted to help women get to the other side of the struggles of living, loving, and working with mental health and mood disorders, specifically bipolar disorder. I knew for sure that I wasn’t the only woman out there that was having a hard time showing up for themselves and their businesses, so, I just started there and invited any and every woman I thought would be interested in joining.

I was determined to be the woman I so desperately needed at one point in my life, and becoming an author gave me the power to reclaim my voice and was the catalyst that shot me headfirst into the entrepreneurial space full-time. Back to her was borne, and I started holding workshops and meet-ups for other women entrepreneurs who were emotionally overwhelmed and struggling in their personal and business lives.

People talk about mindset shifting and manifestation and I am here to tell you that these things are real and doable! I never used to believe in such things, but after having lived and experienced firsthand the power of putting your words and intentions on paper I can say without a doubt that your thoughts control everything and that women are so fucking powerful and we can do anything despite what may be thrown in our paths.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?

The road has not been smooth at all this shit has been bumpy as hell, but it was all worth it! The struggles and challenges I faced were mostly self-inflicted, at least that was the case in the beginning. That’s how self-sabotage works and I was guilty of doing that to myself more times than I care to mention. My weight was another thing that held me back because no matter how hard I tried to hide it behind a smile, I was miserable and I could and would not open up completely because I hadn’t healed that broken part of me. At my heaviest, I weighed 263 pounds and I was a miserable mess!

I never understood how my physical health impacted my emotional health until I did the internal work and got to the bottom of my food addiction. I had to learn to view food as fuel instead of comfort before I could heal my body, which called for yet another shift in mindset. I got serious and hired a personal trainer and lost nearly 100 pounds naturally!

Once I got that weight off my confidence slowly returned and now I have a better relationship with food and a better understanding about how my body reacts to stress and food. Now I work my ass off to maintain my weight and live a healthy life. It’s hard as hell at fifty one, but I know that I have to stay active and eat right so I can live the life I want. You can’t be unhealthy and broke down while trying to encourage and inspire others to do better!

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Back To Her?

As a woman dedicated to supporting and empowering others living, working, loving, and thriving with Bipolar Disorder, I strive to help them be their absolute best in all they do. I’m also the CEO of Back To Her, a community that began as a Facebook group for women facing mental health challenges and emotional overwhelm.

With certifications in Digital and Content Marketing, and expertise as a Brand Marketing Strategist, I specialize in teaching women, how to leverage Private Label Rights Products and digital marketing to create profitable digital products and services. I was also Marketing Director for a publishing company for two years so I also specialize in author branding and book marketing.

But, what I am most proud of is volume one of my international bestselling anthology series “The Art of Womanhood: Fierce, Feminine, Fearless”, which launched on May 8th and landed in the top 100 in three categories on day one! This collaborative masterpiece highlights the stories of ten women from diverse backgrounds and sheds light on the art that is womanhood. I also conducted interviews with the authors, along with several other women, and created a docu-view series that can be found on YouTube!

I originally wanted this book to be for women who were entering their 50th year, but I got so many messages, emails, phone calls, etc from women wanting to be a part of the project so I switched gears and here we are. We get to hear from women who range from a thirty-something wife and mother to a seventy-year-old grandmother and educator! This was a labor of love and commitment and I am so honored that I was chosen to tell these stories!

What makes you happy?

Bringing joy and advocating for other women makes me happy because I know what it’s like to want and need someone in your corner and not have a soul to depend on other than yourself. I became a mother at seventeen years old and had two children by the time I was nineteen, so shit was hard for me. I remember living in a women’s shelter with my children and hoping for better days, so it makes me happy to be able to help another woman who needs it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.back2her.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angela_m_mitchell_97/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angiethemarketer
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@back2her?si=y0l0iE45hAMqFH84