Today we’d like to introduce you to Tenasia Glover.
Hi Tenasia, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I would say my story would truly begin when I was about nine years old. Our family of five soon to be four, lived in the South Fulton area, and around this time my parents were divorcing. I can remember this transition being anything but graceful. I often have flashbacks of my childhood and I believe that God always knew that my mother would need my help. I am constantly reminded by my grandfather through old stories of how I would try to “help” do chores, even at the early age of five and would end up hurting myself in the process. Much later in my life, I would assume the role of mom number two without resentment while my mother worked numerous jobs. To me, it just felt right to assist as much as I could to make her life and mine somewhat easier. I always made sure the house was clean and that my siblings were ready for bed, properly fed, and dressed for school.
My family and I experienced many things, from homelessness to a great deal of mental health matters. Around age 11, the four of us moved in with my maternal grandparents who lived in Clayton County. While grateful we had a place to stay, these were some of the most debilitating years. We lived with my grandparents for about eight years, along with two other adult family members, so picture 8 individuals in a 3-bedroom house. The 4 of us shared a room where my mother and I would rotate sleeping on the floor while my two younger siblings slept on the bed. Although life seemed to hand out numerous rotten lemons, my family and I always chose to find happiness and made some pretty sweet lemonade.
Its truly amazing how far my family has come since then. During such a traumatic time, I graduated from Charles Drew high school in 2014 and would become the first of the grandchildren to graduate from college in 2019 with a bachelor’s in psychology. I am now 26 years old, enrolled at Mercer University obtaining my master’s Clinical Mental Health. I can recall a time when I was ashamed of how I had to grow up, but now I share my story with pride. I now use my past experiences as fuel for my passion to not only support underserved children and families but also as a mental health advocate within minority communities. It is important to understand a person’s background, as it truly gives you an understanding of who they are. Lastly, it is important to note that no matter where one is in life, you must believe that you’re doing the best you can with what you have at this present moment.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I do not believe that anything in this life comes without sacrifice. I tell God all the time I am not one of his strongest soldiers, but deep down I know I have to be because I am still here to fulfill my destiny. Aside from my childhood trauma, one of the biggest struggles I believe anyone will face is when life starts doing its thing. You know the part of life where things happen that are out of your control, but the world never stops for you to process what’s happening. That part of life always felt so cruel to me. During 2020-2021 I felt like everything that could go wrong seemed to. After suffering from so much loss physically, financially, and mentally, I decided I did not want to do this life thing anymore. I simply could not focus enough to attend school, run a successful business and work my regular 9-5. At war with my thoughts, I found myself contemplating suicide which is terrifying to now think about.
At the time I felt like a complete fraud. I often questioned how I could spread mental health awareness and become someone’s counselor while my own mental health seemed to fail me. However, it was in those darkest moments of feeling like I was stuck in quicksand about to be consumed, that I decided to seek therapy. My faith in God and therapy allowed me to free myself from that feeling. Once I regained some much-needed strength, I decided that 2022 would be the year that I would return back to school and pick up where I left of with my life. Although it may sound cliche, the saying “it’s ok to not be ok” is the most accurate and faultless statement. I’ve learned to first, give myself grace and second, place the thought of always having to be strong in the garbage, so I can show up for myself in ways that come from a place of love.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
In regard to my work professionally, I am currently involved in a few lucrative ventures. I seek to use my past life experiences to inspire, heal, motivate, and rehabilitate individuals of all ages and various walks of life through youth advocacy and case management services. I possess a steadfast passion for serving others, and I believe God placed me on earth for that specific purpose. My company Young Minds Matter (YMM) was designed to help youth in urban communities overcome adversity through structured play and mental health, and I seek to one day become a non-profit. I have also ventured into modeling and micro-influencing on social media. My ultimate goal is to keep building awareness for mental health, and continue strengthening my business, Young Minds Matter and future partnerships with various entrepreneurs in different markets. To conclude, this year has been about fully investing into every idea or dream I have no matter how far-fetched it may seem, especially in the midst of trials or failures.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
I would first like to thank God, who is very instrumental and my love for him causes me to find peace in the midst of chaos. As for my support system, I honestly have no idea where I would be without them from siblings, family, mentors, to my close friends thank you for always being there when you can. To Quiana my best friend and roomate who’s been so instrumental in my life these past 2 years, only you, God, and I know the amount of the storms we’ve overcome together. I will never have enough “thank you’s” and I know we’ll make it through many more. I have never met anyone who was almost like me in every way when it comes to being genuine and selfless. I vow to continue having your back like you have mine. Overall, I am just beyond blessed and thankful to have people who love me enough to show up for me in a million ways and thank you to the future readers and VoyageATL for allowing me to share some of my story.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @youngmindsmatteratl , @ten_asia_
- Others: Tiktok: @tenasiaglover
