Her Story
About Cristina
I'm a trauma therapist who has been working in the mental health field for 6 years, with 3 years in my current position. I primarily work with veterans and first responders, dealing with some of the more horrific traumas and PTSD. Being a veteran myself, having served 6 years in the military, I'm able to bring a different level of understanding to this specific population, which helps a lot of people open up and get better healing from somebody who kind of understands and has experienced it. I'm in private practice, and I take on my own clients. If I see that they need help, I do a lot of pro bono work for people until they get on their feet, or if I see they need immediate healing and they don't have means to pay for services. I do this mostly with veterans. My most notable achievement is being able to help veterans heal, which is a huge achievement for me.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Cristina
01What do you attribute your success to?
I think definitely being in the military - I served 6 years - and being able to kind of have a different level of understanding in the mental health field for this specific population. It helps a lot of people open up and just get better healing from somebody who kind of understands and has experienced it already.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I think definitely the advice that you can bring a horse to water, but you can't make them drink it. In the social work field, it's very important to kind of know your limits, and not overwork yourself, or overburden yourself, or do more work than the other person, because then it's just detrimental to me as a social worker.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I think just prioritizing us as clinicians and social workers - being able to make sure that we're taking care of our mental health, right? Because we can't pour from an empty cup, or we can't help others if we can't help ourselves.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge is obviously not being able to help everyone. You know, they have to be in the right mindset to want the healing or accept the help, and that's hard for me because I'm a social worker at heart and I obviously want them to heal, but it has to come from them. As for opportunities, there are so many opportunities to serve this community because there is so much need, unfortunately, and I feel like they do sometimes get left behind.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Respect, integrity, and commitment.
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