Ayana Brown
MS, LPC Associate supervised by Stuart Young, LPC-S
Counselling
“It’s self-full to be first, to be as good as possible to you. To take care of you, keep you whole and healthy. That doesn’t mean you disregard everything and everyone. But you want to come with your cup full…”. - Iyanla Vanzant
A Navy Veteran from NYC, I earned my Masters of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in 2024. I joined several professional organizations, including the Association for Creative Counseling, Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development, and the International Association for Resilience and Trauma Counseling.
In 2025, I became a National Certified Counselor (NCC) and Certified Brainspotting Therapist.
I specialize in supporting Caregivers and Veterans within the BIPOC community. My experience spans nonprofits, private practice, and outpatient settings, Senior Services, justice-involved individuals, and those facing substance use challenges. Clients seek me out for grief, PTSD, and racial trauma.
My approach is person-centered, strength-based, and culturally celebratory, integrating traditional talk therapies (CBT, ACT, DBT) with somatic modalities. Besides pursuing certifications in Accelerated Resolution Therapy, EMDR and Brainspotting, I hold credentials as an Emotional Emancipation Circle Facilitator, Certified Anger Management Specialist, and Certified Mental Health Peer Specialist.
Our sessions are collaborative and tailored to your interests. Music and laughter tend to show up eventually!
I enjoy Caribbean music, comedy, pop culture, travel, food, and empty-nester life with my Husband and cat.
What's with the name?
My late mother was born in the Bahamas, and my father in Jamaica. The cerasee plant is known in the Caribbean for its potent bitterness and detoxifying benefits. In Ghana, I experienced tasting a cocoa seed straight out of the pod! Its sweetness was subtle and smooth. I also learned of Tetteh Quarshie, the blacksmith who smuggled cocoa pods into Ghana, Africa, in the 1800s. He shared the pods with his community and implored them to plant these trees, cementing Ghana as the 2nd-highest producer of cocoa beans in the world!
Healing is both bitter and sweet. For your future self, you may need to endure discomfort at first. Then, your body and mind may crave the thoughts, sensations, and emotions that you just detoxed from! Afterwards, you will experience the sweet joy known as peace. This will be your new normal. It will be difficult to want the fake stuff ever again.
Quarshie did not ask for permission to help his community, and neither will I. Social justice requires us to return to our cultures and embody the spirit of ubuntu: “I am because WE are.” As an Emotional Emancipation Circle Facilitator, I learned that “WE are each other’s medicine”.
I follow in his footsteps, renouncing the concept that healing is an individualist task, rather than a collective blessing.
To all who share the responsibilities of caregiving, I invite you to have some tea.
Enjoy your day on purpose,
Ayana "Yaa Asantewaa" Brown
Your Well-being Matters
This is your headline
