Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Nelson.
Ashley, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
The decision to start my private practice began with a quiet but persistent calling, a sense that the way I wanted to care for people could no longer fit inside the walls or limitations of someone else’s system. I’ve spent years watching suffering go unseen, trauma go untreated, and individuals blamed for symptoms that were never their fault. Over time, that calling became a responsibility: to build a place where healing is not rushed, where stories are honored, and where people feel deeply seen in ways they may never have been before.
What draws me toward this practice is more than entrepreneurship. It is a mission to create a space where compassion and clinical excellence meet. Where trauma survivors are no longer minimized. Where first responders and caretakers finally have a place to lay their armor down. Where children and teens can feel safe enough to speak truths they’ve held onto for years. And where people who have felt broken learn that they were never broken….only hurting.
Success isn’t defined by numbers or volume.
Success looks like impact to me:
The first patient who walks out of our clinic breathing easier than when they came in.
A mother saying she finally feels hope again.
A first responder who hasn’t slept well in years telling me, “This is the first time I feel like someone understands.”
A teenager who stops self-blaming long enough to imagine a future.
A trauma survivor who realizes they don’t have to heal alone.
If I can build a clinic where people feel safe, respected, and transformed even in small ways, then the risk is absolutely worth it. I’m willing to take this step because I know that the systems currently in place often fail the very people who need care the most—and I refuse to be another provider who looks the other way.
This practice is my way of answering that call.
It is how I give back, how I serve, and how I participate in changing the trajectory of someone’s life.
And if I can do that, even for a handful of people, that will be the foundation of true success.
I come from the same world as the people I serve. I know what it feels like to carry heavy things in silence, to push forward because others depend on you, and to step into roles of service while quietly navigating your own scars. My background as a mother, an Emergency Room and Sexual Assault Nurse, a first responder advocate, a trauma-trained clinician, and someone who has spent years listening to the pain that people hide has shown me how deeply our communities need spaces that truly see them.
I have cared for survivors of violence, healthcare workers who are burning out, military and first responders who have spent years holding their breath, and children who have learned to be brave far too young. I understand their worlds not from a distance, but from experience, proximity, and a shared humanity. That is why this clinic is not just a business venture for me; it is a responsibility, a calling, and in many ways, a reflection of my own journey.
Mindful Essence was built for the people who rarely ask for help but desperately need it.
For those who keep showing up even when they’re exhausted.
For those who have been strong for so long that they’ve forgotten what rest feels like.
This work matters to me because I’ve seen what happens when care is done wrong, when it is rushed, dismissive, or transactional. And I’ve seen what becomes possible when people finally feel safe enough to be honest, vulnerable, and hopeful again.
This clinic is my way of breaking cycles, restoring dignity, and giving people a place where healing is not only possible; it’s expected.
If there is one thing I want you to understand, it’s this:
Mindful Essence isn’t just what I do.
It’s who I am called to be.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The road has not been smooth, and I wouldn’t trust it if it had been.
Building this practice has required walking through uncertainty, resistance, and moments of deep personal stretching. One of the greatest challenges has been choosing to step outside systems that are familiar, structured, and “safe,” even when those systems no longer aligned with how I believe care should be delivered. There is a certain comfort in staying within established frameworks, even when they are flawed. Leaving that behind meant taking responsibility not just for my vision, but for every outcome tied to it.
There were practical challenges, of course like licensing, regulations, insurance barriers, financial risk, and the sheer weight of building something from the ground up while continuing to care for others. But the hardest challenges were quieter and more personal.
There were moments of doubt. Moments where I asked myself if I was asking too much of myself, or if the system would ever make room for a model of care that prioritizes depth, safety, and time over volume and speed. There were moments where the emotional toll of holding space for others all while building, leading, and carrying responsibility felt heavy.
Another challenge has been pushing against a culture that often undervalues mental health until it reaches crisis. Advocating for trauma-informed, patient-centered care means confronting outdated beliefs, institutional inertia, and at times, misunderstanding. It means standing firm in the belief that people deserve more than surface-level solutions, even when that belief is inconvenient or costly.
There has also been the challenge of balance being a clinician, a leader, a mother to four, an instructor and a human being all at once. Learning when to push forward and when to pause. Learning that strength does not come from doing everything alone, but from building intentionally and sustainably.
Yet, every challenge has clarified my purpose.
Each obstacle reinforced why this work matters. Each setback strengthened my resolve to build something different; something honest, ethical, and deeply human. I didn’t come this far because it was easy. I came this far because the people who need this kind of care deserve someone willing to keep going, even when the road is uncertain.
The challenges didn’t deter me.
They refined me.
And they continue to shape a practice built not on perfection, but on integrity, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to doing this work the right way, even when it’s the path less travelled.
As you know, we’re big fans of Mindful Essence Psychiatry and Wellness, LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Mindful Essence Psychiatry and Wellness, LLC is a trauma-informed psychiatric practice built around one core belief: people heal best when they feel genuinely seen, heard, and safe.
At Mindful Essence, we provide comprehensive psychiatric care across the lifespan, including diagnostic evaluations, medication management, psychotherapy, and integrative mental health services. We specialize in working with individuals who often carry invisible weight, children and adolescents navigating anxiety, mood disorders, neurodevelopmental differences, and trauma; adults recovering from abuse or violence; healthcare professionals and caregivers facing burnout; and first responders and military members who have spent years functioning in survival mode.
What sets Mindful Essence apart is not just what we do, but how we do it.
Care here is intentionally unrushed. Appointments are designed to allow space for stories, not just symptoms. We practice trauma-informed, evidence-based psychiatry while honoring the lived experiences behind every diagnosis. Many of our patients come to us after feeling dismissed, mislabeled, or hurried through systems that didn’t allow time for complexity. At Mindful Essence, complexity is expected and respected.
We are known for depth, precision, and compassion working together. Every evaluation is thorough. Every treatment plan is individualized. We integrate psychiatric expertise with a strong understanding of trauma, neurobiology, and the long-term effects of stress on the mind and body. Our goal is not simply symptom reduction, but restoration of stability, dignity, and hope.
Brand-wise, what I am most proud of is that Mindful Essence has become a place people trust with their most vulnerable truths. Patients often tell us, “This is the first time I felt understood,” or “I didn’t know care could feel like this.” That trust is not something we take lightly; it is earned through consistency, transparency, and respect.
I want readers to know that Mindful Essence is not a high-volume clinic or a transactional model of care. It is a practice built with intention for people who are tired of being strong, for families seeking clarity and support, and for individuals who are ready to heal but need a space that feels safe enough to begin.
This brand represents integrity, advocacy, and deep humanity. It stands for doing mental health care the right way, even when that way is slower, harder, or less conventional.
Mindful Essence exists to remind people of something they may have forgotten:
They are not broken.
They are not alone.
And healing is possible when care is done with skill, presence, and heart.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Happiness, for me, is not loud or flashy. It is quiet, grounded, and deeply meaningful.
It comes from moments of alignment; when what I believe, how I live, and how I serve are in harmony. I find happiness in knowing that the work I do matters, that it eases suffering rather than adding to it, and that people leave my presence feeling a little lighter than when they arrived.
Happiness is watching someone soften when they realize they are finally safe enough to tell the truth. It’s seeing a patient reconnect with hope after years of feeling unseen. It’s the privilege of witnessing resilience up close and being trusted with someone’s story at a vulnerable moment in their life.
Outside of my professional world, happiness lives most clearly in my children and in the life we build together. It’s found in unhurried time, going geocaching and turning curiosity into adventure, working through escape rooms as a family and learning how to problem-solve side by side, gathering around the table for board games filled with laughter and friendly competition. It’s in holidays spent together, traditions both old and newly created, and in traveling to new places where we explore, learn, and experience the world through one another’s eyes. Those moments ground me. They remind me why presence matters, why connection heals, and why the simplest shared experiences often carry the deepest joy. It’s in the moments of stillness that remind me to breathe and stay rooted. It’s in the balance between holding space for others and protecting the spaces that restore me.
I am happiest when I am living with purpose; when my work, my values, and my humanity are not in conflict, but working together. Happiness is knowing that I am showing up authentically, serving with integrity, and creating something that leaves the world kinder than I found it.
It’s not the absence of struggle that makes me happy.
It’s meaning.
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