Reclaiming Wellness

research project prompted her to examine natural coping mechanisms for anxiety and depression.

BlkGirlDiaries, a “digital story to advocate and empower women of color” is Brabham’s passion project as she navigates college. The senior aims to educate people on how to cope with anxiety, depression, and mental health struggles not talked about in the Black community.

“When I started doing my research and finding different ways how we can better our mental health, I said ‘no, why don’t I just start a community for this?’ And so that’s why I started Black Girl Diaries,” Brabham said.

That coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic and the murder of George Floyd pushed Brabham to create her own platform.

As Brabham finishes her senior year, she’s focused on reclaiming not just mental wellness but her physical and spiritual wellness.

“That means just bettering myself as a whole mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually, finding different resources and routes on how I can better myself in those different aspects of life,” she said. “When I first started my mental health journey, I started looking through the route of natural coping mechanisms, so mentally that can be me just reading a book. It can be me just listening to a podcast or even just taking the time to myself… physically, that can just be me just walking, going on a trail, going to the gym, going out with my girls. Spiritually, it’s most definitely taking the time out of my day and speaking with God.”

Although the wellness journey is not a one-size-fits all journey, both Brabham and Nicole Cammack, president of Black Mental Wellness, agree that reclaiming wellness is a continuous journey that requires discipline, consistency and a lack of pleasing people.

Black Mental Wellness, a corporation based in Washington, D.C, hosts