Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Lanecha Conner.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Dr. Lanecha Conner is the CEO of I Dare you to Heal, LLC, a company dedicated to providing mental health and coaching services. I’m a wife, mother of two middle schoolers, a dog mom, and a crafty creative. I am a Licensed Clinical Therapist and Confidence & Mindset coach with 16 years of experience in the field of Mental Health. I am also the Host of I Dare you to Heal podcast. I am also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
The road to becoming the person I am today has not been the easiest. I am originally from the south side of Chicago, IL. As a result of my mother having a drug addiction, my siblings and I grew up in foster care. Some might identify with defining children in foster care as a ward of the state or “in the system”. I remember telling myself that I had to be the advocate for my brothers; not even thinking about myself. We moved around and changed schools a lot! My childhood was tough and plagued by traumatic experiences, particularly sexual abuse. I struggled emotionally and mentally during my childhood. Some of the struggles were lack of confidence, low self-esteem, not feeling “good enough”, and being accepted. These same struggles remained well into adulthood. Despite the negative experiences of my childhood I have always managed to focus on elevating myself. I thoroughly enjoy learning. I knew that if I wanted to change the trajectory/narrative of my life, it was important to dream big and start believing in myself.
I became a therapist because I wanted to be an advocate for children, much like I had been for my brothers during my childhood. I quickly realized that working with children was not my jam. In fact, I opted to work in leadership roles over practicing therapy. It would be nine years post master’s degree before I returned to the space of being a therapist.
Now, remember those emotional and mental struggles I told y’all about? They were still there; unattended, emerging every day and becoming very heavy! I found myself shrinking who I was to make other people comfortable and avoid losing people. It was difficult to cultivate and maintain relationships with people. My confidence was non-existent; even though I had several accomplishments, like pressing through to become the first person in my family to attain a doctorate degree. I thought people pleasing and overextending myself would provide me with the confidence needed to propel my life. I was attributing all of my successes to perfect timing, luck, or the contributions of others; forgetting my own talent and hard work. Yet the ugly voice of self-doubt and limits remained; I felt stuck. Simply put, I didn’t love myself and it was impacting every aspect of my life. I became tired of talking myself out of pursuing opportunities and procrastinating because I felt unqualified and insecure. My mental health was suffering, that’s when I knew I had to start healing!!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Smooth road?! Absolutely not! My story consists of many challenges and obstacles. I’ve lived the majority of my life not knowing who I was or who I wanted to be, honestly. Living this way impacted my relationship with myself and others. Although I’ve encountered many roadblocks throughout my life, I’ve learned a lot. This biggest lesson is that you have to actively heal! Whether it’s big “T” or little “t”, we’ve all experienced some form of trauma. You can’t “wait out” trauma, you have to actively do the work to heal it. Healing looks different from person to person. For me healing looks like implementing boundaries, being mindful of my capacity to help others, respecting & loving myself, and curating a community with authentic & dope people.
As you know, we’re big fans of I Dare you to Heal, LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
I Dare you to Heal, LLC is a private mental health practice operating virtually. I Dare you to Heal provides therapy and group coaching services. I’m most proud that I get to hold space for my clients on their journey of healing. I devote my passion, time, and expertise by helping clients improve their quality of life; through promoting self-confidence, crushing imposter syndrome, and mindset shifts.
As a therapist, my specialties are trauma, anxiety, and depression. As a confidence and mindset coach, my specialty is Imposter syndrome; particularly limiting beliefs. I’m super excited to share the launch of my new group coaching program! The program entitled, “RELEASE THE LIMITS”, is a comprehensive four months program designed to help entrepreneurs, who are ready to, overcome imposter syndrome by releasing limiting beliefs. Enrollment is currently open.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Listen, you can live the life you want, the life you’ve always dreamed of! In order to be able to live that live you’ve got to start taking positive, strategic risks. I used to avoid risks at all costs because I was afraid of failure and the unknown. I used to always “play it safe” or remained in my “comfort zone”. But staying comfortable and avoiding risks was not working for me and, trust me, it won’t work for you!
Moving to different states have been example of me taking major risks. The first move was from my hometown of Chicago, IL to Las Vegas, Nevada. I didn’t know many people in Las Vegas, but I was determined to make it work. I had to remove myself from my hometown to get a new start and chase my dreams of becoming an entrepreneur. The second move was to Atlanta, GA. My husband’s, Charles Conner, career lead us here. I didn’t know anyone here, but being here has been great for my family and my career.
Remember, taking risks can make you feel uncomfortable, but eventually, you have to get comfortable with being “uncomfortable”! I tell my clients all the time, “If you continue to do the things you’ve always done, you’re going to continue to get what you’ve always gotten”!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.idareyoutoheal.me
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/idareyoutoheal/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/idareyoutoheal
- Other: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/i-dare-you-to-heal/id1603754244
