Today we’d like to introduce you to Cartelia Kennedy.
Hi Cartelia, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My first career began in Education. As the first person in my immediate family to graduate college, I spent 14 years working in public education. During that time I earned a Master’s in Teacher Leadership, and obtained my K-12 principal certification. Naturally, my career path seemed to be leading me toward administration.
After more than a dozen interviews and several rejections, I found myself reflecting deeply on my direction. I had never felt so deregulated in my body, my self esteem was low, and I felt lost about what I truly wanted. My long-time goal of becoming an administrator was unraveling, and despite my family’s support. I sensed they weren’t getting enough of my attention.
Eventually, I made the decision to resign from teaching and transition into the field of mental health. That decision was rooted in the emotional connections I had built with student and their families. My love for helping others had not changed, it simple needed a new directions. Working with students/families from divers backgrounds and learning needs inspired me, as did my one personal journey at home, where my husband and I were learning to parent a child with a severe learning difference.
Fast forward I chose to return to school once aging this time to pursue a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health at Lamar University, From the moment I made that decision , everything began to align. It was clear that this new career path wan’t just right for me, it was right for my family as well.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has been a smooth road since then, everything seemed to fall into place. I was accepted into the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program at Lamar University in 2015, which was a CACREP-accredited institution at the time. I was also awarded a $10,000 grant to support my continued work with children in the field of mental health. Returning to school not only reignited my passion for helping others but also gave me the gift of spending more time with my family.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Wellness Work Counseling Service, PLLC?
I am the owner of Wellness Work Counseling Service, located in Cedar Park, Texas. Wellness Work is a private practice offering trauma-informed mental health services for individuals, families, and groups.
My mission is to cultivate an inclusive and supportive space that promotes holistic health and well-being. I am committed to empowering individuals through personalized therapeutic experiences while fostering collaboration among wellness practitioners. By prioritizing compassionate care, Wellness Work seeks to enhance the overall well-being of our community and inspire positive, lasting change in the lives of those we serve.
What sets us apart is our integration of somatic psychotherapy with holistic healing practices such as EMDR, trauma-informed yoga, and mindfulness-based approaches. We specialize in supporting clients navigating anxiety, depression, complex trauma, and major life transitions.
Brand-wise, I am most proud that Wellness Work has become known as a place of deep empathy, embodiment, and transformation—a space where clients feel genuinely supported as they reconnect with their bodies, regulate their nervous systems, and rediscover their inner resilience. Our goal is to help clients not only think their way through healing but feel and experience it—mind, body, and spirit. At this time Wellness Work Counseling is moving toward providing supervision to clinical mental health graduates in order to grow the services I offer as an individual practice to group practice with several counselors that believe in a holistic approach to healing. Wellness Work Counseling offers low-cost therapy options as well as sliding scales.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
People often assume that because I teach regulation and embodiment, I always feel calm. In reality, one reason I came to this work because I didn’t. I used to live in a constant state of overdrive, and learning how to slow down, listen to my body, and re-parent my nervous system has been one of the most transformative parts of my personal journey. Learning how the nervous system works and how trauma is stored in the body has taken me on a personal journey of self-love and awareness.
As a woman of color, I know my body experiences higher rates of trauma exposure, not because of who I am, but because of the historical, cultural, and structural factors that disproportionately affect people of color. Understanding this has helped me make sense of my lived experience and deepened my empathy for others navigating similar challenges.
I still struggle with imposter syndrome, but through mindfulness and curiosity, I’ve learned to recognize when my body is in survival mode, stuck in fear or self-doubt, and how to gently guide myself back toward what matters most. I am deeply proud of my journey. Another fact someone might not know is that growing up, I struggled in school and in college, and those early experiences shaped my sense of self-worth. Today, I see how those challenges have given me resilience and perspective.
I now have the coping skills and self-awareness to regulate those parts of myself, and I find immense joy in helping others do the same.
Pricing:
- Private Pay-$150
- Sliding fee- $140
- Sliding fee- $125
- Sliding fee- $10
- Insurance- BCBS, Cigna
Contact Info:
- Website: https://wellnessworkcounseling.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wellnessworkcounseling
