I'll never forget showing up for school one day in 7th grade to find all the teachers and students quietly crying together.  Everywhere you looked, there were sullen faces and despair.  We had a classmate complete suicide. I remember seeing him at lunch, sitting alone.  I had math class with him and he was teased.   I could have done more, but I didn't know. That is what started my journey to being a helping, healing professional. I began my journey in mental health in 2013 as a direct care staff at a group home for at-risk youth. While there, I had the opportunity to meet so many teens who changed my outlook on everything - including what I wanted to be when I grew up! After my time there, I moved to Mississippi and worked at a similar job, but with higher acuity clientele.  I moved up the ladder as far as I could go with a Bachelor's degree and a supervisor who was a mentor to me asked, "Is this all you want?" The answer was no. I wanted to do more and be able to help in more ways, so I took the plunge and applied to graduate school. While there, I started to realize so many things about my life.  I realized how hard it was to be alone. I realized that I didn't know how to advocate for myself and how much I burned myself out trying to prove my worth to others.  And most importantly, I realized where I learned all my patterns and behaviors.   After graduating, I moved back to Minnesota and became a Licensed Graduate Social Worker and gained experience as a therapist while receiving supervision.  During this time, I worked with mostly neurodivergent children and their families but occasionally saw adults as well.   One of the most important lessons I learned in my early years was that alignment is so necessary.  After moving on from my first job, I felt the stress melt off of me.  I was sleeping better, felt freer, and was just generally a happier person.  I dug more into my spirituality (which is heavily based in my intuitive guidance) and found that I never felt the way I wanted to because I was fitting myself into a box that I didn't actually fit in.  I wasn't able to use my natural gifts and talents to help people, and that is my true calling.