We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Starre Cannon a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Starre, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

The most powerful thing that my parents did that has impacted my life, how I up in the world and why I am effective at what I do was show me the true meaning of love; for myself and others. I will never forget this time when my dad picked me up for the weekend (my parents were divorced since I was 3yo) and there was a song playing on the radio. The daughter of the woman my dad was dating at the time, was singing along and knew all of the words to the song. I believe at the time I only knew the hook of the song so she kind of made a joke about me not knowing all of the words to the song. My dad paused the music and asked me about my grades, I told him that I had A’s and B’s. At the time, I didn’t know where he was going with the question. He then said, Starre being “cute” doesn’t matter, it’s temporary and it fades. He continued, “what matters is who you are as a person and how you treat other people”. Then he resumed the song. I didn’t realize it at that time, but those words shaped me and what I chose to focus upon. As one of my favorite quotes by one of the greatest authors of all time says, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”- Maya Angelou

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 been very observant, a problem solver and naturally empathic since I could remember. It only made sense that I chose a field where I could help people. I can say that I chose counseling, but it really chose me. Since I was in high school, I knew that I wanted to be a Therapist to teach people how to love themselves. Throughout my years of working in the community, with a various range populations, I always felt like there was something missing from the mental health services that I was providing. It always seemed to be single faceted and didn’t address the person as a whole. As I continued to work for different organizations, recovery centers, and the government, I realized that what was missing was providing mental services from a holistic approach. Another aspect that I found to be the common root to many of the presenting problems that my clients were having, was a lack of self-love.

In 2020, a month before the spark of the global pandemic I took a leap of faith and started my own private practice, Holistic Love, where I provide Holistic Therapy and Wellness Coaching services. In my practice, I work with clients to teach them how to love themselves, remember their worth, create balance in their lives, and prioritize their needs. Because I believe in a holistic approach, my treatment recommendations address the healing of the mind, body, and spirit. Nothing makes me feel more proud, then when my clients share with me how they finally learned how to set boundaries and show up for themselves. I am extremely blessed to do the work that I feel called to do and to work with clients who I feel aligned with.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

What is often overlooked in my profession, is the importance of practicing what you preach. There are so many mental health providers who help their clients practice self-care and heal from their trauma but neglect to do that for themselves. As much of a balancing act that it can be at times, I make a solid daily effort to pour into my own cup before I pour out of it. It is honestly, how I have learned to avoid burnout amongst many other issues that arise when we neglect ourselves as providers.

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

I had to unlearn being “strong” and “selfless” for everyone but myself . As a Black woman, I am often perceived as being “strong” and with that being expected to sacrifice my own needs for the needs of my boss, partner, family, and friends. I believe that many women and particular, women of color are programmed into believing that we aren’t supposed to prioritize what we need and if we do then we are “selfish”. I unlearned that conditioning. I have learned that self-love is not selfish at all, it is how I am able to be show up as the best version of myself for others.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://holisticlovecommunity.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starrecannonlpc/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/starrecannonlpc/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/starre-cannonlpc
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/starrecannonlpc
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@starrecannonlpc