Meet Xiomara Sosa

 

We recently connected with Xiomara Sosa and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Xiomara , really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

I found my purpose a long time ago as a young girl experiencing my parents’ way of giving back to all communities. They didn’t talk; they simply did. By their real-life example, I learned it all from them.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I am a mental health clinician who focuses on treating the whole person, not just the symptoms. I combine conventional and non-conventional therapies to treat mental health issues and aim to address the biological, psychological, and social factors that contribute to mental health. This approach includes mental health, physical health, emotional well-being, interpersonal relationships, and spiritual needs. I help clients identify patterns in their lives that may contribute to their struggles and work on developing strategies for making healthier choices.

I’m passionate about empowering diverse women who are struggling with challenges to heal and achieve well-being. In particular, I have a special place in my heart for diverse women navigating the intersection of gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, culture, and heritage, and who identify as other.
Having grown up in New York City with immigrant parents, I developed a natural ease with and embraced diversity that included different cultural and ethnic norms. The experiences my friends outside of New York City described to me didn’t seem to match the way I experienced and viewed the world and the way that I understood and embraced differences in all people.

As a result, I went through a process of asking questions about why people outside of New York City were not as open-minded or culturally aware, and embracing as I was. I found purpose, joy, and meaning in figuring out how to bridge that gap. I often was the one questioning the behaviors and belief systems I saw in others in terms of biases, and using education and awareness as a great way to change minds and hearts.

I am the owner of XAS Consulting, LLC, a company I created in 2003 dedicated to healing and well-being.

I am also the Founder and Executive Director of The X-Studio: A Mental Health Cooperative, a non-profit that provides an alternative business practice model for graduate and postgraduate students seeking practicum/internship experience and clinical supervision experience while providing pro bono/no cost and reduced cost mental health services to community members in need.

I am the Owner and Clinical Director of Summerville Women’s Mental Health Services (SWMHS), which is a teaching practice that provides supervision for graduate interns and clinical supervision for newly licensed associates. We are committed to providing comprehensive mental health care to address a variety of needs throughout a woman’s lifespan. Our services meet these needs and foster good mental health. We are an inclusive, affirming, culturally competent, multicultural mental health provider for all women: cisgender, transgender, intersex, non-binary, and woman/feminine identified. We welcome and serve all ethnic, cultural, racial, and religious communities. We help clients heal from anxiety, depression, dysphoria, trauma/stressors, and more, teaching clients constructive coping skills and healthy thinking to promote their healing and improve their well-being.

Our specializations are integrative mental health (IMH), multicultural counseling, and women’s mental health. Our specialty areas and issues align with the communities we serve. We are qualified and culturally sensitive to work with the veteran community, the Hispanic/LatinX community, and the LGBTQIA2S+ community. We are bilingual (English/Spanish), military veterans, and LGBTQIA2S+ with lived experience. Individual and group sessions are available. We offer in-office and telehealth appointments.

We aim to improve our clients’ healing and well-being so that they can achieve good mental health. We work with multicultural issues in all ethnic and racial communities and are especially culturally competent to work with the Latina, LGBTQIA2S+, and veteran women communities. Most of our services are provided in either English or Spanish.

My goal is to promote and improve mental health services that represent my dedication to social change in my communities. As a 9/11 survivor and an Air Force and Army veteran, I am dedicated to helping all survivors on their journey to trauma recovery. As a social scientist, I explore global cultures and educate people about diversity issues. As a social entrepreneur, I address pressing multicultural issues worldwide. As a social change advocate, I raise awareness about the social welfare of all people.

My counseling specialty is mental health. I am a highly skilled professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor (CMHC) who provides flexible, consumer-oriented counseling/therapy. As a CMHC, I have a foundational skill set that is distinct from those of other behavioral health disciplines. I address and treat mental and emotional disorders and promote mental health. I combine traditional psychotherapy with a practical, problem-solving approach that creates a dynamic and efficient path for change and problem resolution. Although I work from a wellness model, I can diagnose emotional and psychiatric disorders and guide clients in the process of living with such disorders. My training in addressing the needs of the whole person and in wellness and prevention qualifies me to integrate health care.

I practice a progressive, innovative path to mental health with an evidence-based, integrative theoretical orientation. I strive to help my clients achieve lasting change through a culturally competent, balanced, flexible, modern, and open-minded approach. I am trained in a variety of therapeutic techniques used to address many issues, and I help with mental and emotional health issues as well as relationship problems. In addition, I am involved in community outreach, advocacy, and mediation activities. I work closely with other mental health specialists, such as psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatric nurses, and school counselors.

My credentials include an accredited Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Phoenix and a Master of Science degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a specialization in Forensic Counseling from Walden University, accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). I am also a National Certified Counselor (NCC) with the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC), a Licensed Professional Counselor with the South Carolina Board of Professional Counselors, and a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor-Candidate in South Carolina. I am supervised by Dr. Latrice Love, a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor.

As a military veteran who served in the United States Air Force (USAF) and the United States Army, I attended The University Community College of the Air Force, am a graduate of the USAF Military Training Center, the USAF Technical Training Center, and the United States Army Training Center.

I was a member of the South Carolina Clinical Mental Health Counselors Association (SCCMHCA) and served on its Diversity Committee. I am also a member of the American Mental Health Counselors Association. My current professional memberships include Psychology Today, and my past memberships include Star Behavioral Health Providers and The Veteran Owned Business.

I was appointed and served as a Special Government Employee of the Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans by the Department of Veterans Affairs. In addition, I was a member of the Charleston, SC Tri-County Counseling Association and a leader in the American Counseling Association’s Veterans Interest Network. I also provided disaster mental health services to the American Red Cross for disaster and humanitarian relief efforts, and I served on the Sesame Street for Military Families Racial Justice Advisory Committee.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Looking back, I think the three qualities, skills, and areas of knowledge that were most impactful in my journey were learning early on not to be influenced by peer pressure even as a child and young person – learning people skills and how to have boundaries that protected me from bad influence – and knowing that there are always consequences to everything – good and bad – that we choose in life.

The advice I give people who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these is to get very crystal clear on what you want your life to feel and look like – then make sure you eliminate what does not serve that and include what does – in a respectful way that honors you and the people around you. Always stay mission-focused focused but know how to be flexible when needed.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

The most impactful thing that my parents ever did for me was to remain humble and of service to others in need. They were also incredibly good at modeling behavior that kept the toxic and problematic, destructive people with bad intentions away as much as possible. I saw how that worked so well for them and learned that early on, protecting my peace and helping others who need it is so very important for a meaningful life and good mental health.

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Xiomara A. Sosa

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