August is Black Business Month and we are highlighting black women entrepreneurs because they are one of the fastest growing groups of entrepreneurs. Dr. Catrise Austin is an award winning cosmetic dentist to the stars and Hip Hop Recording Artist, Cardi B., Famously rapped about her in her music. Dr. Catrise understands the connection between dental health and mental health and we discussed the importance of having a culturally competent dentist that you can trust to open up to and talk about anxiety and low self-esteem with regards to dental health. 

Teri Johnson is an award-winning entrepreneur and owner of Harlem Candle Company and Harlem Perfume Company and she uses African American History to illuminatemhomes across the world with her elegant candles, fragrances and designs that are inspired by the Harlem renaissance. She talked about how success as a black woman entrepreneur comes with highs and lows.

On this episode we discuss how Black Women should support each other and uplift each other because they often have to work twice as hard for their businesses to survive and they don’t get the same level of financial funding as other business owners. Many of black women owned businesses are self-funded and were severely impacted by 202. As a black woman entrepreneur and doctor, Dr. Judith personally understands the importance of supporting black women owned businesses because entrepreneurs deal with a whole host of mental health issues because they tend to take care of everyone else but themselves. This puts them at risk for High functioning depression because they worry about the needs of their clients, employees and their families and they feel like they cannot slow down because they are needed by so many.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Supporting Black Women Owned Businesses.
• Coping with High Functioning Depression as an Entrepreneur
• How to take risks as a physician business owner.
• How to build relationships in business.
• How to form long lasting friendships
• How to check-in with your friends
• How to take care of your mental health as a small business owner
•  How to Ask For Help and Support

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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical
professional. This content is not medical advice.

Summer Forlenza is a licensed marriage and family therapist in California, where she runs a private practice specializing in EMDR therapy for trauma recovery. Summer is a practicing therapist specializing in trauma recovery since. 

On This episode of the Vault we dive into different types of trauma that may impact our lives. In my research with High Functioning Depression, many people don’t realize how much painful past experiences may impact their present situations. Many people cope with the collective trauma of 2020 by spending hours online doom scrolling, spending or engaging in habits that are not healthy. Others may overwork and spend their time hyper focused on their careers and academics rather than processing their trauma because they are avoiding the trauma. Avoidance and busying oneself is a trauma responds that many
are not aware of. On this episode of The Vault, Summer and I discuss ways to process Trauma in a healthy and more sustainable way.

Summer Forlenza received her Master’s in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine
University in 2018 and has been a practicing therapist specializing in trauma recovery since then. In addition to her clinical work, Summer is an online content creator who offers workshops, workbooks, and webinars for folks looking for practical and actionable skills to manage their mental health.

Listen in as we discuss:

 Coping with Trauma.
 Coping with High Functioning Depression
 What is EMDR
 What are tools for coping with trauma?
 How to cope with trauma responses
 How to talk to others about trauma
 Generational Trauma
 How to Ask For Help and Support

Follow Summer Florenza
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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical
professional. This content is not medical advice.

Swan Sit is a creator and entrepreneur with 3.7 Million Followers across all platforms. She was previously the Global Head of Digital Marketing at Nike, Revlon and Estee Lauder. Swan is one of the most sought-after marketers and speakers in business and emerging tech. And she is an internationally renowned professional speaker at events alongside world leaders and notable public figures. But what most people don’t know is that Swan is the child of immigrants and she has a history of Scarcity Trauma. Swan and I bonded over our shared history of Scarcity

Trauma, growing up with limited resources and foregoing joy to further our studies at Ivy league institutions where we met as graduate students. We discussed how being women of color inindustries dominated by men puts women of color at risk for developing High functioning depression. We also discussed ways that women can realistically take care of their mental
health, and challenge imposter syndrome so that they can build their own brand. Swan is now a Public Board Director at Edgewell and Novabay, advisor at AF Ventures VC and over a dozen companies, and Co-Founder of Ani Energy with TikTok stars Josh Richards and Bryce Hall. Swan is known for leveraging her unique breadth of experience to advise the companies and
leaders of tomorrow.


Listen in as we discuss:

 Coping with Scarcity Trauma.
 Coping with High Functioning Depression
 Challenging Imposter Syndrome
 Coping with Rejection Sensitivity
 How to use technology to foster and grow community
 Building Your Own Brand.
 Immigrant Mental Health
 How to Ask For Help and Support

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Disclaimer: You may want to consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical professional. This page is not medical advice.

Dr. Jennifer Ashton is an Emmy® Award winning journalist, best-selling author and
internationally known as co-host of GMA3. She was also ABC News’s Chief Health and Medical Correspondent. She left GMA and ABC News this year (The Top News Network) to become Founder and CEO of  Ajenda . Ajenda is a groundbreaking women’s health and wellness company addressing the challenges of menopause health and weight management in today’s health conversation. Jen and I went to the same medical school at Columbia and she is a rockstar in the Columbia community. She’s not only a double board-certified OB-GYN doctor, but she is also a nutritionist and certified in obesity medicine. She joins me to talk about how to address stubborn belly fat that starts to become difficult to manage in your 30’s and 40’s and how to address hair loss due to stress, aging and hormonal changes. Dr. Jen’s world was forever changed when she learned that her ex-husband died by suicide.

She discusses how her community and family helped her to heal so that she could return to work as a physician and medical correspondent to continue impacting the life of millions of people. Dr. Ashton was the only network medical correspondent who is a specialist in Women's Health and the only doctor with a national media platform who also holds a degree in nutrition and obesity medicine.

She was also only the third physician to hold the position of chief medical correspondent in the 75-plus-year history of ABC News. She is the recipient of the prestigious Columbia DuPont award for Excellence in Journalism and was a 2024 John Jay Award honoree by her alma mater for her distinguished work with ABC. Her advocacy in women’s health has also earned her the esteemed 2023 Women Changing the World Award from the American Heart Association.

Before joining ABC News, Ashton was the senior medical correspondent for CBS News and appeared on “The Early Show” and “CBS Evening News.” Ashton is also the author of six bestselling books, including most recently, “The New Normal: A Roadmap to Resilience in the Pandemic Era” (2021).
 
Listen in as we discuss:

 Hair loss and how to cope with it.
 Belly Fat and best ways to address it.
 Coping with problematic symptoms of perimenopause and menopause.
 Weight Loss Medications.
 Best Diet for living healthy.
 How to cope with grief.
 How to support someone who has lost a loved one to suicide.
 Starting your own business in midlife.

Follow Dr. Jen Ashton:
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 Ajenda
 Good Morning America

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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical
professional. This content is not medical advice.

Spirit is a Doctor of Psychology, Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC) and LicensedProfessional Counselor (LPC). She is one of 64 clinicians in the country certified to conduct custody and mental health evaluations and serve as an expert witness in court proceedings. While Spirit work's with clients focuses heavily on enhancing interactions, resolving trauma, and improving overall daily functioning, Spirit also works with clients in high conflict co-parenting relationships, is an Ordained Marriage Officiant and facilitates community trainings related to the prevention of child sexual abuse. Spirit is passionate about eliminating stigmas associated with mental health and believes that men, women and children of all ages could benefit from routine mental healthcare. She has appeared on more than 200 shows and networks including: Dr. Phil, Dr. Drew, CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera TV and as the host of, Love Goals on OWN. Spirit joins us on the vault to discuss ways to co-parent with a difficult person, how to cope with co-parenting with a
narcissist and how to de-escalate high conflict custody cases in divorce. Spirit and  I also discussed ways that you can find a therapist who is culturally competent.
 
Listen in as we discuss:

 Co-parenting with a narcissist.
 Co-parenting with someone who has severe mental illness.
 Coping with difficult divorces.
 Court cases involving children and custody.
 Communicating with your children.
 Taking care of your mental health and wellness as a parent.
 How to choose a mental health provider who is culturally competent.
 Coping as a single parent.


Follow  Dr. Spirit:
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• Dr. Spirit Speaking Engagements
• T2SEnterprises


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Disclaimer: You may want to consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical professional. This page is not medical advice.

Kody Green is a mental health advocate who is living with a diagnosis of Undifferentiated Schizophrenia. Kody is a motivational speaker, podcast host and content creator with over 1.5 million followers across social media. He has struggled in the past with drug addiction, incarceration, and serious mental health issues. Kody regularly advocates for disability awareness and for decreasing mental health stigma.
 
In order to be a better advocate and speaker, Kody has been trained as a peer
support specialist, recovery coach and suicide prevention specialist. He regularly
shatters stigma and is a mythbuster in the mental health community. Kody’s
experiences are unique because for many years before he was diagnosed with
Schizophrenia he was a caretaker for his mother who also lives with severe
mental health issues.
 
Now, Kody shares his stories about his struggles and how to navigate through
recovery, mental health issues, and life after incarceration. He is the co-host of
Unseen and Unheard Podcast and a popular YouTube Channel about mental
illness. He chooses to pursue motivational speaking and mental health advocacy
for schizophrenia awareness, drug recovery and second- chance opportunities
because he has dealt with these struggles in his own life.
 
 
Listen in as we discuss:

 People judging you because of your mental health challenges
 Appearing High Functioning and not receiving support and empathy
 Navigating substance addiction
 Life after incarceration
 Challenges of being a mental health content creator
 Caregiver support and Caregiver trauma
 Schizophrenia on a spectrum and how people present differently

Don't miss this powerful conversation of The Vault Podcast.

Follow  Kody Green:
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 Unseen and Unheard Podcast
 YouTube
 Mind Over Meetings Book

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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical
professional. This content is not medical advice.

Dr. Tiffany Moon is a former Bravo The Real Housewives of Dallas cast member, but
don’t let her Birkin bags and Louboutin’s fool you. She is a board-certified anesthesiologist, entrepreneur and mother of twins. After immigrating from China to theUnited States at a young age, she excelled academically and graduated from Cornell University at the age of 19. She then graduated from UT Southwestern Medical School with Alpha Omega Alpha Honors and completed her anesthesiology residency at UCSF.

She has garnered numerous accolades, including the Dennis Landers, MD, PhD Faculty of the Year Teaching Award, has been recognized as a Distinguished Educator by the Society for Education in Anesthesia and the American Society of Anesthesiologists.

She has over 50 peer-reviewed publications, has been the recipient of multiple grants and research awards, and is an oral board examiner for the American Board of Anesthesiology.  In addition to her medical endeavors, Dr. Moon is the founder and CEO of Aromasthesia Candle Company and Three Moons Wine. Her entrepreneurial spirit is matched by her dedication to philanthropy, particularly within the AAPI community and for organizations such as The Family Place, WINGS, and Face Forward.

She is the founder of the LeadHerSummit which gathers women leaders across several industries to meet and network at an annual conference in an effort to support each other through sisterhood and self improvement.

Listen in as we discuss:

 People judging you because of your appearance
 Being taken seriously even when you are stylish
 Navigating Midlife crisis
 Challenges of being an Entrepreneur and a Mother
 Scarcity Trauma
 High Functioning Depression in Healthcare

Don't miss this powerful Conversation on The Vault

Follow Dr. Tiffany Moon:
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 LeadHer Summit
 Aromasthesia Candle Company
 Three Moons Wine

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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical
professional. This content is not medical advice.

Dr. Afiya Mbilishaka innovated "PsychoHairapy," using hair as an entry point for mental health services in salons, barbershops, and on social media. She is a therapist, educator, research scientist, hair historian, and hairstylist, and owns Ma'at Psychological Services in Washington, DC. 

Leading the PsychoHairapy Research Lab, Dr. Mbilishaka has published extensively and presented widely. As a recognized expert, she has testified before Congress for the CROWN Act, an anti-discrimination law to protect Black hair. Dr. Mbilishaka is also a natural hair stylist at N Natural Hair Studio in Silver Spring, Maryland, where she loves creating art with locs, twists, and afros. 

Listen in as we discuss:

• The intersection between mental health and hair care
• Why active listening is important
• The history of hair
• Grief of hair loss
• Why people neglect their hair
• And much more!

Follow Dr. Afiya:

• Instagram 
• Hair Mental Health Instagram
• Podcast
• Website

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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical professional. This content is not medical advice.

Ash Pryor is a Peloton rowing instructor and a passionate advocate for inclusivity in fitness. She’s also the founder of Relentless Rowing Academy, a nonprofit dedicated to breaking down barriers for BIPOC and disabled athletes in rowing. Her journey has been marked by resilience; after being diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, she faced significant health challenges but remained committed to her fitness goals.

Since joining Peloton in September 2022, Pryor has not only taught rowing but also used her platform to promote body positivity and combat body shaming. She continues to inspire many by showing up unapologetically and encouraging others to embrace their unique journeys.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Living with an invisible condition
• Moving with kindness
• The mind-body connection
• Showing up as you are
• Doing things that scare you
• And much more!

Don't miss this powerful conversation on "The Vault."

Follow Ash Pryor: 

• Instagram
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• Peloton
• Relentless Rowing Academy

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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical professional. This content is not medical advice.

Are you curious about what it takes to be successful in the creative industry? Join Jerome LaMaar and Dr. Judith Joseph  on “The vault” as they delve into this topic.

In this episode, Jerome LaMaar, founder of fashion brand 5:31, shares their experiences and tips on self discovery. As a Bronx-native, Jerome has defied expectations in fashion, art, and culture for over 20 years. They have dressed A-listers, created the term “South Bronx Luxe,” collaborated with major global companies, and were featured as a key designer in Beyonce’s Black is King DisneyPlus film.  LaMaar is a polymath who has been featured in the New York Times 16x with experience as a Creative Director,Designer, Stylist and Futurist. 

Listen in as we discuss:

• Using colors to motivate you
• Self-discovery and self-cleansing
• The abundance mindset
• Putting the work in
• Navigating High Functioning Depression and facing rejection
• And much more!

Don’t miss this powerful conversation on “The Vault”.

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Disclaimer: Consider your individual mental health needs with a licensed medical professional. This content is not medical advice.