Uncertain deaths and suicides of renowned personalities due to mental illness over the past decade have fueled the fire, turning it into a heated topic in every part of the world. The celebrities especially are seen taking a keen interest in this matter as they have experienced this and know the consequences if not handled properly. The public figures have played a major role in standardizing and highlighting this issue and are somewhat responsible for bringing it to the limelight. But the attention is not always positive.

With celebrities endorsing mental health problems, the public can easily confuse this with their paid affiliations. Due to this, many people do not take this issue seriously. It is important for the doctors working in the relevant field to step up and lead the misguided public on the right path. There is a general conception among the public to always trust a doctor’s words, which is true to some extent. Leveraging this trust and extreme loyalty, doctors should start promoting and talking about mental health.

Doctor McPherson has been educating the masses about mental illness for a very long time. She is a known face in the health care and education industry and has managed to create an impact in a very short period. McPherson has been consistent throughout the years and has actively participated in almost every mental awareness campaign and activity.

A Counselor Educator’s Perspective on Mental Illness

In light of Dr. McPherson’s sayings, a “well mind” is the mental and behavioral health key to a contented life, relationships, and personal wellbeing. It is based on all the actions of people, including communication, flexibility, confidence, learning, and most importantly, “thinking well.”

Dr. McPherson encourages everyone to talk openly about their experiences with life and be mindful about the “impeccability of their choice words to self and others.” It is always the term ‘mental’ that stops the patient from sharing their problems. Though the context of its usage makes sense, this word holds dichotomous socially constructed stigmatic “perceived” meaning. This is why many mental health professionals no longer use the term “mental” in the health care industry and have replaced it with “behavioral.” However, with the usage shifts, this concept of “mental” is still interchangeably used across the masses. To break the silence on help-seeking for mental/behavioral health, it is each of our responsibility to educate those ill-informed by shedding light on the importance of developing life skills and knowing how to manage and stop any “perceived” stressor.

As a Counselor Educator and Supervisor, Ed.D., Dr. McPherson sees mental/behavioral illness as a medical condition just as severe as diabetes or heart disease. She is always making efforts to normalize this illness as it is still considered a taboo subject to discuss. Many people prefer being quiet over venting or talking and lessening their stress to avoid social stigmas, which shows how much more progression our society still needs.

In 2019, she took a bold step by launching her website under the name of ‘Wellness Transformation Centre.’ She aims to share her experiences as a Counselor Educator and guide people to ‘help-seek” professional help instead of relying simply on social media. Negative attitudes and barriers are derived from public stigmas, especially in ill-informed places like faith-based communities.

The WTC website is a one-stop solution to all mental/behavioral health and life problems. Dr. McPherson and her team provide professional help and counseling to people struggling with life or facing difficulties by looking at the problem from a different angle. She helps people think positively and enable them to carve out the good in everything. WTC extends its services as a real-life stress reliever from “perceived”: worry, fear, doubt, anxiety. These perceived stressors are irrational, maladaptive thinking, and cognitive errors. Every individual with a “well mind” should challenge and seek positive alternative ways of thinking, behaving, and living free from “perceived” stressors.

Having more than 18 years of experience and a double major degree in Sociology and Psychology, Dr. Jonell L McPherson considers the will to self-actualize one’s wellness as the optimum and transformative power of one’s mental wellbeing and the core of their mental health. She believes in having a balanced and holistic life. Through her website, she teaches various skills that help people excel at life and cope with others. No matter where the problem arises with effortless skills, Dr. McPherson teaches essential and evidence-based life skills to shift the perspective and behavior of any individual and system optimally.

Learn To Ace at Life

The purpose of launching a website based entirely on mental health help was to boost the confidence of the people suffering from it. Its goal is to empower those under constant stress and fear to talk about their difficulties without being judged and learn alternative ways of shifting their perspectives.

Dr. McPherson is well-versed in her domain and has cured many patients with varying mental health conditions over time. She has the ability to identify the root causes of the problems. She believes that most mental illness issues arise from a disturbed lifestyle, the inability to cope with others, the feeling of not belonging to a particular sect of the society, and lack of life skill development to learn how to manage and stop any “perceive” stressor.

Patients on a large scale, when seeking help, resort to counseling, but very few people resort to counseling, but very few people actually treat the root cause of the mental issue. Dr. McPherson specializes solely in enhancing basic life skills. According to her, if a person learns to “solution focus” every tough situation that life throws at them, they will seldom fail or feel the pressure. Her website: wellnesstransformationalcentre.com, highlights the services WTC provides with focus attention on these three: Thinking Skills, Behavioral Skills, and Emotional Skills. These areas are the most sensitive parts of one’s life. Failure to do well in even one of them can easily affect other areas and phases of life. Her services also extend to provide guidance in financial budgeting skills. Many people suffer from spending too much and end up being bankrupt, leading to anxiety and stress.

Dr. McPherson aims to extend her services on a communal level, which is why she conducts workshops now and then. She empowers individuals and systems to step out of their comfort zones, challenge their maladaptive thinking, and shift their perspective to wellness and a transformative way of life. The workshop focuses on training people to become responsible individuals and transition into a better version of themselves. It involves several fun and interactive activities that stimulate a person’s thinking, enabling them to view things from a different perspective.

The first agreement by Don Miguel Ruiz: “Be Impeccable With Your Word,” fits Dr. Jonell L. McPherson perfectly well. She believes in “practicing what she teaches,” thus implementing what she has learned and taught to others. Adopting these life skills as a way of life has proven transformative well for many. It will raise your level of consciousness and enhance with change the way you look at life.

Author's Bio: 

Wellness Transformational Center, LLC (WTC) is built on the following framework model:

According to Myers, Thomas, and Witmer (2000),Wellness is a way of life oriented toward optimal health and wellbeing, in which body, mind, and spirit are integrated by the individual to live life more fully within the human and natural community. Ideally, it is the optimum state of health and the wellbeing that each individual can achieve.