We were lucky to catch up with Kim Andrews recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kim, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I quit a very comfy, well paid, 6 weeks of vacation time job. I could walk to work and I worked 4 days a week. Everyone kept telling me that i was crazy, but I knew I could no longer stay there. There had been a lot of changes at the hospital based program that I had been working at for 10 years and it was no longer the same kind of place. One of the main issues was that the not for profit hospital was now a for profit hospital which changed everything.

But more important was that I had changes over that time period. For many years I had been going through the motions of life without much joy. I did a good job pretending that I was happy but on the inside I was often miserable. I spent years in search of something or someone to make me feel differently. I was always interested in human beings, different cultures and psychology, so I studied anthropology and rehabilitation counseling before getting my PhD in psychology. Over the years everything I thought I knew and had learned about mental health, especially what would improve it, was not working for me. I realizes that I no longer believed in the “medical model” for mental health care. I do not believe that medication is the answer, or that it is all in your head. It is a much broader issue that includes social norms and conditioning, as well as learning how to care for ones emotional wellness.

I finally left and it was a little rocky for a few years but I am so happy that I did it. I learned to trust myself and make decisions for myself based on my own beliefs. I learned to search within myself for the answers instead of looking externally for someone or something to make me happy. Today I am medication free and leading the life of my dreams. I am building a business that is innovative and authentic to what I believe works. I am combining my knowledge of spirituality, metaphysics and psychological principles with the action of coaching.

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 knew from an early age that i wanted to help change the world, but I had no idea what or how I wanted to contribute. I had many jobs in human services and finally decided to get a Masters Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling and finally a PhD in Psychology. I had all kinds of dreams of working with people and I did a lot of it, but I realized that much of what I had learned did not align with my own beliefs. That is how I ended up opening a Holistic Psychology Coaching and Psychotherapy practice.

I offer individual session and group programs for women primarily. I work to help people gain clarity regarding their lives and learn to feel a deeper sense of trust in themselves. Often people contact me to find freedom from anxiety or depression. I help people to build self confidence and realize that what is happening in their lives is not all in their heads. I gently ask the questions that no one has dared to ask them so they can understand their truth.

I teach people how to deeply understand and trust themselves, and this takes time. Most people are not taught to trust themselves. They are taught to trust someone else who they believes knows better. I teach them to let go of the old limiting beliefs and behaviors that no longer align with who they want to be. The work that I do is personalized, meaning it is tailored to a persons unique needs and goals. Holistic psychology focuses on the mind-body connection, addressing all aspects of your well-being. I combine traditional psychological approaches with holistic coaching practices to help people achieve profound transformation.

I really want people to know that what we are told is depression and anxiety, mainly a chemical imbalance in your brain is not the truth. Depression and anxiety are signals to you that something is not right in your life. There are many factors including; social conditioning, family situations, life experiences, past trauma, or world situations that contribute to the symptoms of depression and anxiety.

I also want people to know that I struggled with depression for most of my life starting in early adolescence. So like many of them my story has many ups and downs. I was told by professionals that medication was necessary and I do believe there was a time when it was helpful, but it was never the answer. For many years I was going through the motions of life without much joy. I did a good job pretending that I was happy but on the inside I was often miserable. I spent years in search of something or someone to make me feel differently. I was always interested in human beings, different cultures and psychology, so I studied anthropology and rehabilitation counseling before getting my PhD in psychology. Over the years everything I thought I knew and had learned about mental health, especially what would improve it, was not working for me. My personal story is a motivating factor and the another reason why my work is so important to me.

Have you ever had to pivot?

It was a huge realization for me to learn that most of what I had been taught about mental health is not true. Over the years I learned that there is so much more to depression and anxiety than therapy and medications. Most of the time medications have many side effects and do not work so well. Learning all that I learned from my own personal experiences and from working in the medical world really opened my eyes. At the same time it was isolating and at times scary to see how people are treated.

Once I realized all of this I had to make a life altering decision because I did not want to be a part of a system that I no longer believed in. SO I came up with a plan and strategy to start my own practice, aligned myself with other practitioners that I trusted,

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start?

For 2 years I saved as much money as I could so that I could leave my full time job to start my own business. It was scary in the beginning not knowing if it would work out. It took me a few years to get my practice to where it is today but I believe it was the best thing for me to do. I am much happier and believe the quality of my life is much better

Contact Info:

• Website: www.drkimandrews.com
• Instagram: @drkimandrews
• Facebook: Dr. Kim Andrews
• Linkedin: Dr. kim Andrews

Image Credits
Jennifer Fiereck from Jennifer Fiereck Photography Stephanie Stanton from High Vibe Chick