Meet Gabriella Mahan

We were lucky to catch up with Gabriella Mahan recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Gabriella, 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 through my healing. I became the person I needed most when I was in the depths of my mental health struggles.

When I was 9 years old, I became hyper-aware of my body shape and size. Being put on a diet by my pediatrician at a young age and a combination of other factors quickly spiraled into a 12-year eating disorder… A battle I didn’t know if I would ever overcome. Fortunately, I was able to attend a treatment center where I had access to a team of trained professionals and daily support groups to help me heal from the inside out.

It wasn’t until the end of my time at treatment that I realized I wanted to use my story to help others heal. My life experiences and own battles helped fuel my passion for the field of Clinical Psychology. Eating disorders are a coping tool for deeply rooted pain and unresolved trauma that gravely impacts both our physical and mental health.

While it doesn’t make sense to many, it did and does to me. There’s a reason eating disorders are one of the most deadly psychiatric illnesses in the world.

Healing childhood wounds, rejecting the diet culture mentality, making peace with food, and learning to treat my body with respect ultimately allowed me to surrender once and for all.

Now, I help individuals of all ages, genders, ethnicities, and walks of life, heal their relationship with food and their body; it is truly the greatest gift God has given me.

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 the proud owner of a group psychotherapy practice called Grow with Gabi in Houston, Texas. We are dedicated to helping people heal from the inside out. Our specialties are eating disorders, anxiety, depression, and life transitions.

At Grow with Gabi, we are learning and growing together, with the client. We believe that to heal fully, we must get to the root cause. Therefore, exploring childhood trauma and interpersonal relationships is a big part of the work we do with clients.

We live in a world that has convinced us that pursuing an unrealistic thin ideal is the key to happiness. That if we “work hard enough,” that void we constantly feel, will eventually go away. That’s why our goal is to help you reach a place of acceptance so that you can experience a more fulfilling life, free from diet culture and the toxicity that ensues.

Grow with Gabi launched in January of this year and is quickly growing! We have a registered dietitian who is formally trained in treating eating disorders, joining our team at the end of September.

My long-term goal is for Grow with Gabi to be a one-stop shop for all things eating disorders and mental health. I hope to have a full team of psychotherapists, dietitians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and recovery coaches.

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?

I think three qualities that allowed me to truly heal were my willingness to surrender my fears and allow others to support me, my open-mindedness, and my ability to be patient and trust the process.

Healing isn’t linear and it requires patience and lots of grace. There will be moments, days, even weeks when you feel like giving up, and it is a constant battle to remind yourself of your “why.”

When you’re able to zoom out and see the bigger picture, it doesn’t feel so daunting. Something that I help a lot of my clients with is reminding them of their values. I encourage them to continuously ask themselves the following questions:

1) What’s your intention?
2) Is this in alignment with your values? Why or why not?
3) Will your future self thank you?

I encourage anyone who’s on their healing journey to proceed with kindness. The way we talk to ourselves has a huge impact on behavioral change. Beating ourselves up isn’t getting us anywhere. It’s only further perpetuating a vicious cycle of shame.

As Brene Brown has said on multiple occasions, vulnerability fosters connection. And humans were made to connect–with others and with themselves.

You are more than capable of getting through whatever it is you may be struggling with. I know you may not believe so in the moment, but know that all this hard work and perseverance will pay off and your future self will thank you and embrace you with open arms.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I always love collaborating with like-minded individuals who are passionate about making a difference in the mental health space. Whether you’re a therapist, dietitian, medical doctor, nurse practitioner, mental health advocate or anything in between, I would love to work together to spread awareness and de-stigmatize mental health struggles. We all deserve healing and peace, irrespective of body shape or size, gender, ethnicity, age, or stage of life.

If you want to connect with me, you can do so by emailing me at [email protected] or via Instagram @grow_withgabi. I hope to hear from you soon!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://growwithgabi.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grow_withgabi/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/growwithgabi
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabriella-mahan-lpc-ceds-7580b4199/

Image Credits

Picture of me (Gabi Mahan) taken by Lois Campos—professional photographer and pictures of Katie (the other woman in the pics) taken by me, Gabi Mahan. Logo designed by my website and graphic designer, Amy Hanneke.