“‘Am I enough?’ is the root to anxiety.”
Today’s podcast is covering such an important topic. We’ve all dealt with different levels of anxiety, and sometimes that can spiral into suicidal thoughts. This is why I was so happy that I got to talk with Dr. Shainna Ali.
Shainna is dedicated to helping others understand the important role of mental health in fostering happiness, fulfillment, and overall wellness. She is a licensed mental health counselor (MH15290), a nationally certified counselor (717226), and an approved clinical supervisor (ACS 3047). As the owner of Integrated Counseling Solutions, she enjoys utilizing a strengths-based tailored approach that focuses on growth, optimism, and the unique identity factors of each client. In addition to mental health therapy, she believes in the essentiality of mental health education.
When she is not on the counseling couch, she is often teaching counselor education courses, writing, or practicing what she preaches (nurturing her own mental health). She shares her passion for improving mental health awareness through her Psychology Today blog, Modern Mentality. She enjoys the opportunity to share about mental wellness through consulting, media interviews, public speaking events, and teaching workshops.
In this conversation, we talk about the root causes of anxiety, why we need better resources for suicidality, how to cultivate great mental health, and much more. I know we can all learn something from this conversation and I hope you share it with anyone you think it will support.
- How discovering what anxiety was in college started Shainna’s journey into understanding mental health (4:30)
- Shainna describes the toughest times of her life regarding mental health (16:30)
- The importance of validating anxiety (20:12)
- Shainna describes the importance of taking suicidality seriously and getting help (24:31)
- How other’s anecdotes of struggle can help us through (28:41)
- The importance of noticing the signs (33:04)
- How the trouble with suicidality is the lack of resources, not the underlying causes (43:02)
- The empowerment of love in mental health (47:21)
- What love is to Shainna (51:23)
Links mentioned in this episode
- The Self-Love Workbook
- Man’s Search for Meaning – Viktor Frankl
- Paths to God – Ram Dass
- Trauma – Elizabeth Jaikaran
- Order Koya’s book Let Your Fears Make You Fierce
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