Marcela is changing the way we look at counseling services in the DFW area in Texas with her groundbreaking bilingual counseling services. She is passionate about mental health and is on a mission to support her Hispanic community with quality mental health support.

She has managed to recruit a group of bad-ass bilingual women that offer Spanish-speaking individuals a new alternative for their mental health journey.

Ana Marcela is a mother of two and a dreamer by nature, once she sets a goal for herself she will persist until she achieves it. Proud to be Latina she is not afraid to use everything that makes her different as her business strategy tools.

As a Latina #momprenuer I am truly inspired by her journey, her drive, and her mission.

 

Let’s meet ANA MARCELA

Q+A

WHO IS ANA MARCELA RODRIGUEZ?

Ana Marcela is a Latin woman from Mexico whose dream of destigmatizing mental health in the Hispanic community has taken her to found the first All-Hispanic psychotherapy group practice in DFW.  Ana is also a mom, wife, friend, and daughter, who is very passionate and loves chasing dreams and making them happen. 

 

FAVORITE QUOTE? HOW OR WHY DOES IT RESONATE WITH YOU?

What is for you would find you 

ONE IS ONE THING PEOPLE DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU?

Im not that social as I look. I really enjoy alone time.

 

WHAT DO YOU DO WITH 30MIN OF UNINTERRUPTED ME-TIME?

Watch a  series 

 

WHAT IS THAT ONE TV SHOW THAT ALWAYS MAKES YOU CRY?

Schitt’s Creek 

 

WHAT IS THE WORLD MISSING?

Compassion 

 

YOUR STORY TOUCHES MY LIFE AND HEART ON SO MANY PERSONAL LEVELS. LET’S TALK ABOUT THE GROUNDBREAKING MOVEMENT YOU ARE CREATING IN THE MENTAL HEALTH INDUSTRY AND THE HISPANIC COMMUNITY.

 

YOU  ARE A PROUD LATINA THAT DECIDED TO TAKE  THE RISK OF USING YOUR NATIVE LANGUAGE AS YOUR SUPERPOWER. HOW HAS THE LOCAL DFW COMMUNITY RECEIVED YOUR MESSAGE, BOTH ENGLISH AND SPANISH-SPEAKING MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY?

It has been an incredibly welcoming experience. I found that our community has embraced us and is helping this dream grow and touch others. 

 

YOU ARE BUILDING A TRIBE OF BAD-ASS LATINAS IN THE COUNSELING WORLD. HOW HAVE YOU RECRUITED ALL THESE GREAT WOMEN? WHAT IS THAT SECRET SAUCE THAT YOU LOOK FOR IN YOUR COUNSELORS BESIDES BEING BILINGUAL?

 The passion, compassion, and care for our community. I love our cultures and what we are made of so I look that our team has those same traits. 

 

MENTAL HEALTH IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT TOPIC THESE DAYS. THE PANDEMIC HAS IMPACTED ALL OF US EMOTIONALLY IN WAYS IT’S HARD TO EVEN EXPLAIN.  NOW THAT EVERYTHING IS GOING “BACK TO NORMAL” PEOPLE ARE FINDING THEMSELVES FACING ANOTHER CHALLENGE, STEPPING BACK INTO THE WORLD. 

WHAT ARE YOU SEEING FROM YOUR SIDE OF THE TABLE AND WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE TO THE PEOPLE THAT ARE STRUGGLING TO “GO BACK TO NORMAL”?

In my perspective, normal will never be what we lived pre COVID- and maybe that’s a good thing. Before the pandemic, we were living at a fast pace and missing a lot of red flags regarding our health, especially mental health.   Post-Pandemia, what we are seeing is that MENTAL HEALTH HAS BEEN IMPACTED DRASTICALLY. THE RATES OF DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, SUBSTANCE ABUSE, AND SUICIDE HAVE INCREASED. People are showing signs of post-traumatic stress disorder and mostly children and teens are at high risk of mental disorders. 

 

TELL US MORE ABOUT THE SUPPORT OF THE LOCAL DFW MOMS. WE ARE ROOTING FOR YOU SO HARD! HOW HAS THEIR SUPPORT IMPACTED YOUR BUSINESS?

Moms are the ones that usually are aware of what is going on at home, they are the ones that look for an expert and professional to help their loved ones. Moms are the ones that call and schedule appointments. They are the ones that recommend us and trust us. We – as a business and clinicians- are where we are thanks to them. We feel their love.

 

MOVING FROM MEXICO TO SPAIN AND THEN TEXAS, WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST CHALLENGING PART OF THE CULTURE CHANGE AND THE MOST EXCITING?

The biggest challenge has been leaving my native country, Moving and leaving my family has been hard.  The most exciting part is the new beginnings, meeting people, new cultures, and making a home away from our native home. 

 

YOU ARE WORKING HARD AND YOU ARE LIVING YOUR DREAM. THERE ARE SACRIFICES WE MAKE AS MOMPRENEURS. WHAT IS THE HARDEST THING ABOUT BEING A MOMPRENEUR?

Balancing work life, chasing a dream, being there for my kids and my husband. Finding a sweet spot has and is hard for me. 

 

THERAPY WORKS ENGAGES WITH THE COMMUNITY IN MANY WAYS, THROUGH COUNSELING, SOCIAL MEDIA, WORKSHOPS, ETC. YOU ARE A BUSY BEE! WHAT IS YOUR MAGIC TRICK TO PRIORITIZE AND MULTITASK?

I love traveling so I always add trips during the year with people that I love to recharge. I also have daily conversations with my best friend.

 

WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE TO OTHER MOMS TO START THEIR OWN BUSINESS? 

Don’t let your inside and/ or outside critics stop you from doing what you want. You will fall and that’s ok, stand up again and try it again. 

 

TELL US ABOUT A FEMALE ROLE MODEL IN YOUR LIFE. A WOMAN THAT INSPIRES YOU ON A PERSONAL OR PROFESSIONAL LEVEL.

Oprah Winfrey and Brene Brown are my public role models. Modeling vulnerability, out-of-the-box thinkers, and dream chasers. Oprah for me is the representation of a dream doer; What she has set her mind for she has accomplished. Her differences have been her strengths. I want that– I am that,  I’m successful as an entrepreneur and as a clinician not despite being a Latina woman with a thick accent but because of that. 

 

WHAT IS THE FUNNIEST THING YOUR KIDS HAVE SAID TO YOU LATELY?

Not to call them babies in front of their friends. 

 

WHAT DO YOU WANT YOUR CHILDREN TO SEE WHEN THEY LOOK AT THEIR MOM?

That everything is possible if you put the work and heart into it. 

 

HOW DO YOU KEEP YOUR CHILDREN ENGAGED WITH THEIR HISPANIC BACKGROUND AND CULTURE?

We go to Mexico 2, 3 a year, we talk with grandparents , and extended family regularly. We cook and celebrate Mexican holidays and festivities. We speak Spanish and talk about the love we have for our culture and country. 

 

WHEN YOUR KIDS ARE SCARED OF DOING SOMETHING NEW, HOW DO YOU MOTIVATE/SUPPORT THEM?

I always tell them they can pursue anything they want– there is no dream to big or too small. My husband and I encourage them to be curious.

 

 

Let’s talk about THERAPY WORKS COUNSELING

WHAT IS THE ELEVATOR PITCH FOR “THERAPY WORKS COUNSELING”?

We are the first 100% Hispanic counseling practice in DFW. Our mission is to serve our community through our mental health services. All of our team members are native Spanish speakers and bilingual. We are from different countries of Latin America making us not only diverse but represent different cultures within the Hispanic community. 

 

YOU ARE ON A MISSION TO TAKE THE STIGMA OUT OF MENTAL HEALTH. WHAT IS THE STRATEGY THIS YEAR TO PROMOTE THIS MISSION?

I’m doing conferences, webinars, and using social media to accomplish this. We write blogs, do video clips, Facebook lives, webinars, speaking engagements for free to give back to our community. We want that all of these resources that my team and I create with a lot of love and passion to destigmatize mental health would get to everyone who needs it. Im also part of the board of a nonprofit organization: Contigo Wellness  whose mission is to serve the mental health of  the underserved LATINX community in Texas 

 

HOW WAS THERAPY WORKS BORN?

One day in 2017 I decided I will take a leap of faith. I sublease an office, keep a tutoring job to make the expenses, pay a babysitter to be able to do both, and had the encouragement of my husband who has always been my biggest cheerleader. At first, I didn’t know my niche would be the Hispanic community. I think the community found me and I was open to the opportunity. 

 

YOUR PASSION FOR THE COMMUNITY AND EMPOWERING THOSE AROUND YOU IS CONTAGIOUS.  TELL US MORE ABOUT HOW YOU HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY THIS PAST YEAR.

My team and I are doing big campaigns through social media to get the word out there about mental health specifically in Spanish. We create content each month about specific themes regarding psychology, mental health, and relationships.  I’m investing time, effort, and money in creating resources for free for the community. Information is power and I truly believe this.

 

Want more? Check out her website

https://www.therapyworkscounseling.com/

Follow THERAPY WORKS COUNSELING

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/therapyworksana/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/therapyworkscounseling

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