Today we’d like to introduce you to Janessa Neighbors.
Hi Janessa, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Thank you for having me! Coming to Savannah in 2018, I transferred to another university to finish my Bachelor’s degree, which I changed to Psychology. Shortly after my 2020 graduation in May, I took the summer off, then enrolled for my graduate degree, which was/is Healthcare Informatics. When I graduated with that in 2021, I was really wanting to create something but I didn’t know how or what I wanted to create. I was currently in healthcare as a manager and I just wanted more for myself than just that. Being a leader in a fast paced, continuously changing environment really helped me grow professionally and personally, but I was still working to meet someone else’s expectations.
Coaching/mentoring was something that I was looking at for a while as I wanted to help people in a more holistic way. I did research on some places that were recommended to me, some that I also found on my own, and I became a certified life and relationship coach shortly after my 2021 graduation. Being fresh out of that, I was having trouble finding my niche and what I could bring to the table for not only me, but also for someone else. I had someone reach out to me shortly after me certifications, asking if I wanted to be a coach/mentor for a health company. I joined it and it really helped me improve my relationship with food. It also gave me experience with being a mentor and helping others meet their wellness goals. I enjoyed it for the few years that I was with them but I also knew that I didn’t want to do this forever as I was still meeting the expectations of someone else and not my own. After I attended the annual Summit, I decided to move on because during the time, I figured out my niche and was already brainstorming the overall business purpose and layout. After almost a year of putting things together, Nessa’s Safe Space, LLC was born!
Back story on my business, I’m a trauma survivor of various types of abuse, neglect, and a survivor of various dysfunctional relationships. It’s one of the reasons why I came to Savannah as I needed a fresh start and I fell in love with its culture plus compared to my hometown, there was way more opportunity in the area. For a long time there, I was so set on that I didn’t need therapy but in 2022, I had a lot of clarity that I began to gain after reconnecting with my dad after 3 years, I didn’t like how I felt most of the time with all the mental and emotional baggage, plus I was also in a healthy relationship that began to become serious, and I thought to myself, “I need to start making some changes not just for those who associate with me but for myself mainly.” Being in counseling for 3 years now, I’ve discovered that I have Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD). Unlike PTSD that has one traumatic event, C-PTSD is developed from having long term traumatic events happen repeatedly. So with my life experiences, I wanted to make Nessa’s Safe Space a virtual safe space for trauma survivors in general, offer speciality mentoring for Parentified daughters who became child caregivers (I being one, starting at age 10), & for those in any type of relationship dynamic that needs to make it healthier for them. There’s other things that I do, you just need to explore the website haha there’s mindset blogs, free gifts that are downloadable, and some things that are on my list for the future too. Aside from this, it’s also a space where we can get into taboo topics (sexuality, identity, spirituality & religion, inner critic and thought processes, mental health topics in general, life curveballs, body positivity and body dysphoria, the list goes on). I’m a woman of mixed race and part of the LGBTQ community as an ally and lover of humans so I made this to be inclusive and want it to be a space where you feel accepted for who you are, lovingly.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
For the most part it’s been smooth! The development of business has been smooth and the website was really fun to create and build. The main struggles, which I think most new small business owners can relate to, is the financial part. Keeping things efficient and cost effective in the beginning until the business gets off the ground is something that happens. Luckily for me, I was able to build my own website with Squarespace and just use other tools that I was already familiar with to make communication easier and more open. I also work full time elsewhere, so this is something that I do part time and I know that can be a challenge for those who want someone who does this full time. Also, for me, I’m a private person so I’m not one to post about a lot of things in a short period of time. For me, I’ve learned to be a bit more open about my personal life but still have boundaries there so that I’m not making myself uncomfortable. I’m learning also to take the “me” out of certain services that I offer because while I’ve been there, everyone’s life path is different.
As you know, we’re big fans of Nessa’s Safe Space, LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Nessa’s Safe Space is a celestial, galaxy themed, virtually all inclusive space and there’s something on the website for pretty much everyone! In a world that’s becoming more and more digital, I want to be different and be reachable to someone who may be a few hours from me or in a different time zone. I’m proud that I’m able to make that connection happen.
My specializations are helping Parentified daughters de-condition from the parental roles that they were forced into at a young age so that they can reclaim themselves independently as the rare, individual gems that they are and learn what they like to do and how they individually feel and believe in. Being a caregiver at a young age, while you’re still developing as a human also, is very challenging and the relationship dynamic between the child caregiver and sibling stalls a lot of developmental and life experiences for the child caregiver. It makes their relationship unhealthy/unnatural because it’s mirroring more of a parent to child, rather than a sibling to sibling.
I also help/guide/mentor other individuals in their own trauma recovery. This isn’t therapy as I’m not a therapist besides, not everyone benefits from therapy. So making life term goals and gaining insight so that the healing journey is full of joy, growth, acceptance, grace, compassion, and peace is what I focus on because not only are you being met with many things from memories to triggers that you might not be proud of, but you’re also met with inner discoveries that you didn’t know you had, or had but suppressed. I feel like every human deserves to live authentically. It took me a long time to realize that I was worthy of that and deserved that too.
My brand is all about shedding old skin, rebuilding, & growing the new skin. I wish I could hug my high school self and my early adulthood self because they both really needed it, since those two “selves” of mine were the peaks of a lot of unhealthy experiences. I love to write as a way to clear my mind so there’s mindset blogs on my website called “Orbiting Awareness”. I love to also write for fun so I have traveling blogs for those who are looking for a vacation. I’m a foodie so there’s blogs for restaurants that I’ve been to that passed the vibe check haha. My website is human, professional, & a tad spicy. It grows with me and I’m always adding new things to it. It, for a good majority of it, mirrors me. I’m not one to take life too seriously!
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I love to read so I’m currently reading various self help books. Dr. Nicole LePera, Dr. Catherine Leaf, & Dr. Glenn Doyle are some of my favorite mental health advocates that don’t force medication, but are for it when the need is there. They focus on giving clarity on relationships that us humans experience. They give tools to stay grounded and straight forward guidance when there’s bumps on the healing journey. they also give tips on habit changing, being patient with yourself, & giving insight to the various thoughts and feelings that trauma survivors experience. The list goes on! I also love Dr. Lindsey Gibson as she explains the many dynamics that adult children of emotionally immature parents experience and ways to make those dynamics easier. She also gives love and understanding to those who have went no-contact when the dynamic is toxic. I am also learning about the Mother Wound where us women have been taught to shrink ourselves by our mothers in the face of trauma that has been passed down through many generations and how it has changed the mother -daughter dynamic in unhealthy, sometimes even toxic, ways. Some of these relationships do get better, some not so much. For me, I’ve had to really accept some things but also say “f*ck no” to what didn’t do me any good, anymore. But don’t be mistaken: I’m always going to be healing, as it’s lifelong and I’ve accepted that. Some days are great, some are not so great, but like my favorite shirt says “It is what it is”, so I give myself hugs, I receive hugs, and I keep going!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.nessasafespace.space
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/jayyy1228
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janessa-neighbors-977738157
Image Credits
For my professional headshots: Stella Alday Photography
