Kente Circle therapist wants more black people to consider therapy

LJ “Soul” Tucker has connected with a wide variety of people through her work as a therapist, but most of the underlying issues her clients bring to her are universal issues that many face.

Soul has worked as a registered therapist at Kente Circle for five years. Its clientele is about 85% black, ranging from teenagers to adults in their 50s. He is grateful to have the opportunity to work with such a diverse group of people, not only for his professional development, but also for the direct benefits it brings him in his own mental health journey.

Soul doesn’t see his role as that of a therapist who “fixes” people; rather, he imagines he can connect with community members and help them find their own solutions.

Many of the topics covered in her sessions concern issues related to identity and race, often with interracial couples. Soul specializes in marriage and family therapy, so he sees his share of couples and their areas of concern.

“Some of the common themes that I have personally encountered are families who identify as white and have adopted African American children who do not have the same identity,” he said.

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Soul also worked with couples from different backgrounds through difficult conversations about race and systemic issues that came to the forefront after moments of police brutality. For most, communication seems to be the biggest obstacle.

“I think communication is probably the most important factor in anything,” he said. “How can we convey the message we want to convey with love? »

June is dedicated to men’s mental health, and Soul sees it as an opportunity to connect with men of color and help them overcome the barriers that prevent them from seeking help.

“Men struggle to be vulnerable to societal expectations and fear that those close to them will judge them or view them as worthless. Some ways to support men are to listen and ask curious questions,” Soul suggested.

Asking questions about how to support someone with their health and looking for actionable tasks that you can return to later are just some of the ways someone can support a friend struggling with mental health issues . According to Soul, simply showing someone that you’re invested in their well-being can go a long way.

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He also advised against using what a man shared during a vulnerable time as an attack during conflict.

The professional landscape in which therapy takes place has changed dramatically in recent years. Developments in telehealth brought on by the pandemic have made it easier for clients and therapists to connect.

Soul entered the profession shortly before the pandemic began, so the transition was quick for him. He noticed that the lifestyle change led more people to seek therapy.

“I think this intense shift to isolation, people being alone or stuck with family members for long periods of time, which was normal in their daily routine over the last ten years, has really played a role a role,” he said.

Young people have been an increasingly numerous clientele since the pandemic, following the civil unrest caused by the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers. He described it as a wave of people reaching out to him, looking for ways to deal with the unrest.

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Soul saw a similar influx of interest in its services from people following the death of Sammy McDowell of Sammy’s Eatery, who died suddenly in April.

Many Black people view insurance as a barrier to seeking therapy, but Soul said his practice strives to offer clients the most affordable options possible. Once a customer finds an insurance option that works for them, Soul and his colleagues at Kente Circle can accommodate them as best they can.

“What we’ve done, I think is very good, is we’ve sort of eliminated a lot of the hassle that our therapist and our clients have to go through in terms of this information,” Soul told about navigating the insurance system. “Sometimes insurance companies can be a little slow to respond to us, which is a little frustrating, but once we get that down, there’s no guessing anymore. »

Nearly half of Soul’s clients pay between $20 and $40 for each session, while many others pay nothing. Most of her clients start coming in about once a week and can increase to once a month.

Online platforms like BetterHelp and Talkspace have helped give people greater access to therapists across the country as the stigma around mental health has eased. While Soul welcomes this change and increased access, he also believes it has its limits.

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“I think as the popularity of therapy increases, it also starts to look like a trend,” he said. “Finding the right person can also be exhausting if you don’t find the right person. It can sometimes feel like dating where (someone says) ‘I haven’t found the right therapist for me, so I don’t think therapy is working.’

Soul also believes that meeting the demand for more diverse therapists will help people seeking support find therapists who can understand them directly and engage them with their needs. Kente Circle has strived to provide free and discounted training to students who wish to become counselors.

“We understand that there is a high turnover rate for black professionals in the therapy world, which is why we try to incentivize them to be there and make the field more welcoming and more stimulating,” a- he declared.

Kente Circle also offers free supervision to black professionals, usually at the cost of maintaining their professional license to practice. Soul sees it as a way to relieve them and allow them to concentrate on their work.

Soul and Kente Circle are developing numerous initiatives to increase access to therapy and provide future professionals with the guidance they need to succeed in the industry.