Detroit Mom’s Local Love series highlights local women and the businesses they have built. We love supporting small business! Today’s Local Love Spotlight belongs to Priya Rednam-Waldo and Annie Phillips, owners of Healing Home Counseling Group!
We asked Priya and Annie to share a few fun facts about themselves to get started. Get to know Priya!
- She is an Army Veteran who deployed to Iraq to provide medical services for soldiers and Iraqi nationals.
- She has performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
- And, she is a first-generation Indian-American who has been lucky to visit India several times.
Next, get to know Annie!
- She has traveled to over 30 different countries.
- She once had a spider live in her ear for two days.
- And, she played soccer her whole life and still plays in a women’s soccer league right now!
We asked Priya and Annie to share a little bit more about their business with us, too. Get to know them and their business, Healing Home Counseling Group, below!
How did you come up with the idea of your business, and how did you start?
Priya: “After serving parents and children together as oncology/hematology social workers at Children’s Hospital, [we] decided to prioritize supporting parents through therapy during the unique challenges of the perinatal period. Through our own experiences with postpartum anxiety, we recognized the incredible need for compassionate therapeutic support to shift from surviving to thriving in the joy of parenting.
“During the height of the pandemic, Annie and I were in the early postpartum phase with our babies and knew parents were in great need of perinatal and pandemic-related therapy. We decided to launch our business. With certification in perinatal mental health care, we were confident in the support we could provide and allowed our core values–compassion and excellence–to drive our work. Mothers and fathers needed support as soon as possible. We began with virtual telehealth services and were incredibly busy with more clients than anticipated within the first few months.”
Annie: “I started my career at Children’s Hospital working with families experiencing life-changing diagnoses. This is where I met my amazing business partner, Priya. We realized we could make a larger impact on the mental wellbeing of families through opening our practice, and training and hiring therapists to effectively treat families experiencing perinatal mental health issues.
“[We started] with a passion . . . As a mental health professional that suffered from postpartum anxiety and hyperemesis, I wanted a place where women and their families could feel comfortable and receive the support and validation that they deserve during this difficult transition. During the perinatal period [they] need a safe, non-judgmental space to voice concerns and fears related to pregnancy, childbirth, and welcoming a new member to their family. It is a necessity to have this space during this season of life. [It] should be part of every family’s pre- and postpartum care plan.”
Knowing what you know now, is there anything you would have done differently when you were first starting out?
Priya: “Engaging with a business coach with specialized support for mental health practices would have been helpful when we were first starting out. We are currently working with an amazing business coach and have gained so much new wisdom for optimizing our clinical and administrative systems and the marked increase of time and energy has been really wonderful and motivated us to grow our team to support more clients on the journey of parenthood. Personally, I also would have been more mindful of developing boundaries around my time so that I did not feel pulled toward work when with my family and vice versa… I am glad to have taken the time to establish boundaries since then. [I] find them to be very beneficial to me and those I care about.”
Annie: “Prioritizing self-care into my daily routine. When you are caught up in the daily grind of starting and running a business, it can be really easy to let that go. Trust me, it will catch up to you!”
What is the best business advice you’ve ever been given?
Priya: “The best pieces of business advice we were given were to embrace our strengths of determination and confidence, keep a steadfast focus on ‘the business numbers,’ and recognize the true value of providing our clients with an opportunity to regain strength and restore peace in their homes and lives.”
Annie: “Success in business often requires a combination of various strategies and principles. As a social worker, I am trained to ALWAYS look at the whole system rather than just the individual, when doing therapeutic work. Our team of therapists at Healing Home is a system. Everyone on our team plays an important role in how our various strategies, values, and principles function. We really value our team!”
Have you faced adversity in business due to being a woman? How did you navigate that?
Priya: “I have been grateful to launch our practice in this stage of my life where I can be very selective in engaging with individuals with shared values and therefore have experienced minimal challenges as a female in business. In my previous experience, both in military and civilian healthcare environments, I faced countless experiences of being indirectly and directly asked to diminish my voice and my value as a woman. Additionally, I faced being told on several occasions that my leadership or success had limits simply because of my gender. I navigated those experiences through connecting with my core values to include self-respect and finding [the] strength to advocate for myself with other women who shared similar adversities. Over time, I found the ability to advocate on my own as well. [I] look for opportunities now to mentor other women as they navigate these types of experiences.”
Annie: “I believe that as a woman business owner, one of my biggest challenges has been myself. I have worked really hard to develop the confidence and assertiveness to feel worthy of owning this business. Overcoming self-doubt and developing a strong sense of self-worth is so important when being a woman business owner. Another hurdle is developing systems in my home life so I am not the default parent, and tasks in the home are equitably shared. THIS IS POSSIBLE, if you and your spouse put the work in.”
How do you persevere in challenging times?
Priya: “My supportive husband and loving children and my amazing business partner, Annie, are the greatest sources of grounding and encouragement during challenging times whether personal or professional. I have also worked to develop a ‘village’ of incredible friends who are a very helpful sounding board. [They] offer compassion and a new perspective when adversities arise. My own wonderful therapist, too, I have to credit for helping me to develop the skill to ask for and receive support to balance my natural tendency toward independence and self-resiliency to overcome challenges. I have learned and practiced the immense power of vulnerability and engaging with my support systems and caring village, especially during challenging times.”
Annie: “Resilience is built through learning from failures and using that knowledge to improve. I would not be successful in my career if I had not been really intentional with facing my challenging experiences. I look at the obstacles I overcome as part of my story and try to incorporate and integrate them into my life as an experience that has made me stronger, vulnerable, and a more understanding and compassionate person. Also: exercise, french fries, Dairy Deluxe, and my 12-year-old dog, Max.”
What impact do you want your business to have?
Priya: “Our vision at Healing Home Counseling Group is for all individuals and families to feel seen, valued, and supported from the point of wanting to conceive through pregnancy, the postpartum period, and beyond. Our team wants to ensure that all people on the journey of parenthood know that they are not alone and have confidence that they can be truly well. With our engagement in a world of inclusivity that celebrates the unique beauty and strength of all people, we strive to support the larger efforts to empower the marginalized and underserved with compassion and respect, especially those on the journey of parenthood, for the betterment of the world.”
Annie: “At Healing Home Counseling Group our goal is to reduce stigma and provide the most informed and evidenced-based care to the perinatal community. By providing compassionate care and education, we aim to raise awareness and encourage vulnerability and open conversations about maternal/paternal mental health. Healing Home Counseling Group also engages in community outreach to collaborate with healthcare workers. [This is] to ensure comprehensive care during this vulnerable health period. The goal of this is to enhance patient outcomes and promote well-being during the perinatal period.”
What are the pros and cons of being a woman business owner in 2023?
Priya: “Pros: build[ing] the service-oriented work environment we always wanted, one that prioritizes [our] core values of compassion, empowerment, integrity, excellence, and respect. We emphasize the importance of wellness and balance in all aspects, to include our team’s mental health. Our mission is purposely centered on uplifting an overlooked yet incredibly important population that includes not only women and birthing parents, but also men and non-birthing parents, to emphasize equal value and responsibility for wellness on the journey of parenthood. A wonderful extra for me personally is the opportunity to be a leadership example to my children so they understand the strength and potential for women to make significant change in our world.
“Cons: less external and more internal at times. Women receive messages from a young age to excel at all things at all times. That is an impossible expectation. I continue to work internally on managing expectations so I can find balance and be present with my business and family as I work to achieve my goals.”
Annie: “Pro: empower[ing] and inspir[ing] other women in mental health that you can be a therapist, run a successful business, and have a family. Many women starting families in mental health often get burnt out, leave the field, or reduce hours. I want to inspire other women [to see] that it is possible to work in mental health as a mom in a healthy way.
“Con: it can be difficult to find a healthy work-life balance. Societal expectations and traditional gender roles put additional pressure on [us]. [This] can feel like a juggling act. My husband and I work hard on our family systems to ensure we are both the best versions of ourselves for our children and each other. I recommend the book, Fair Play.”
What knowledge would you share with someone who wants to become an entrepreneur?
Priya: “Believe in yourself and surround yourself with people you believe in you too!”
Annie: “Network and collaborate. The perinatal health/mental health community is so amazing. We all have the same goal of spreading awareness and helping with access to care. We never look at other mental health practices as competition. Rather, as community partners that our clients can gain services and knowledge from.”
What do you do for personal and professional development?
Priya: “For professional development, I find great fulfillment in mentoring new clinical social workers as they excitedly [enter] the field. Our practice welcomes MSW interns each year and in teaching them, I honestly learn so much as well. Our practice is also currently developing online psychoeducational courses and hopes to translate the training and education that we have gained into an opportunity to reach more individual[s] in need of compassionate therapeutic support.
“For personal development, I gain so much from my wonderful husband who shares my core values. [He] also is very dedicated to supporting underserved populations in Michigan. He and our children have had the greatest impact on my desire to grow and evolve toward the best version of myself. I also find connecting with other therapists, especially my small but mighty group of woman/parent business owners, to be a joyful and restorative experience.”
Annie: “I could name a million. The women in the mental health community are so powerful! Come visit Healing Home, to check out our library. Dr. Becky (Good Inside), Nedra Glover Tawwab (Native Michigander and amazing therapist, author, and influencer) Eve Rodsky (author and advocate for women’s rights). My amazing therapist friends who are my rock during challenging times. Priya, Hasti, and Mariam, I am talking about you! My husband, who has supported and believed in me from day one. My two little girls who inspire me to be the best version of myself both personally and professionally.”
What mantra or quote do you live by?
Priya: “Finish each day and be done with it.”
Annie: “‘Be here now” and “Work smarter, not harder.'”
What’s your favorite place in Detroit or Michigan?
Priya: “My favorite place is the beautiful University District neighborhood in the city of Detroit where we are lucky to live. We are so grateful have kind neighbors and peaceful spaces for our children to play and learn.”
Annie: “I love hanging out in my backyard with my family. My home is my favorite place in Michigan.”
Where can our readers find you on social media?
You can follow Healing Home Counseling Group on Facebook, Instagram, and on their website!
