The process to become a Therapist in California requires a lot of money, time and energy. Graduate School in itself cost me $100,000 most of which I have paid off by working full-time throughout school and trainings. Now I have $20,000 left. I spent about 6 years doing minimum wage as well as unpaid work training as a Therapist.
Over the years, I've offered my therapy services for free to:
Underserved populations who are terminally ill
Homeless populations and those suffering from severe mental illness and addiction
Dementia patients and the elderly
Underserved neurodivergent youth
Young children needing support and guidance through outdoor nature based therapy
Countless hours volunteered at Couples Retreats co-facilitating connection and repairing broken relationships
Supporting Individuals with Trauma, Anxiety and Depression
Volunteering by co-facilitating plant medicine ceremonies
I have never asked for money, and I'm honestly feeling pretty embarrassed to do something like this for myself. I am the first in my family to complete Graduate School. My family immigrated to the U.S. from Armenia with very little money, and worked hard to give us opportunity. The value of hard, honest work has been instilled in me from a young age and that you can really make any of your dreams come true with focus and commitment.. Yet, the last $20k of my student loan debt is extra difficult for me to pay off now for a variety of reasons, including lack of work.
I recognize this is a systemic issue. The system designed to put Therapists through the wringer and spit them out. It is a bigger problem that I hope to help solve in the future but for now... I am burnt out and beaten down by that system from being someone who was once so excited to be a helping professional...I have big dreams and visions for helping others, my inspiration comes from healing my family lineage and intergenerational trauma - but that vision seems so far at the moment as I'm bogged down by the financial pressure of this student debt. My mental health has suffered as well as my physical health, making it difficult for me to show up and help others.
The world is going through tough times but if there's any chance you have been touched by me or my work and want to support Mental Health care and accessibility, help me pay off the rest of my debt to release me from this burden so that I can continue to offer my services and my time in helping others!
Your donation will allow me to follow my dreams of going to Armenia and volunteer at the Women's Center and help heal the trauma my lineage has faced for centuries.
My eternal gratitude and a vulnerable request <3
