Stories of Transformation

Stories of Transformation

‘We All Need a Chance to Heal’

July 5, 2023 | Comments Off on ‘We All Need a Chance to Heal’

‘Mental Health Is an Everybody Issue’

July 5, 2023 | Comments Off on ‘Mental Health Is an Everybody Issue’

‘Going Through All the MHALA Programs Was a Godsend’

January 24, 2023 | Comments Off on ‘Going Through All the MHALA Programs Was a Godsend’

‘Getting Connected to MHALA Helped Me Right From the Start’

December 1, 2022 | Comments Off on ‘Getting Connected to MHALA Helped Me Right From the Start’

‘Everyone Always Treated Me With a Smile’

December 16, 2021 | Comments Off on ‘Everyone Always Treated Me With a Smile’

‘Now I Have a Really Strong Support System’

December 1, 2021 | Comments Off on ‘Now I Have a Really Strong Support System’

A Journey of Restoration and Self-Expression

June 15, 2021 | Comments Off on A Journey of Restoration and Self-Expression

‘My Life Is New’

April 28, 2021 | Comments Off on ‘My Life Is New’

‘MHALA Came Through for Me’

February 19, 2021 | Comments Off on ‘MHALA Came Through for Me’

‘2020 Was My Year’

December 18, 2020 | Comments Off on ‘2020 Was My Year’

‘MHALA Loved Me Back to Life’

It was the promise of a hot shower that convinced Roxanne to visit Mental Health America of Los Angeles.

Roxanne was a copywriter at a radio station before her world came slowly crashing down. A back injury, depression after a failed marriage, and lapsed health insurance banded together to pull her into a downward spiral. The mom of three found herself without a job and unable to pay for her home.

Not quite understanding the nature of her disability, Roxanne left her youngest children with their father and moved into her car. When there was space available, she stayed at a shelter.

“My life was a big, deep, dark hole that just kept going,” she says. “There was no light at the end of the tunnel. It was just dark – and I was falling. I didn’t know who I was.”

Roxanne lived on the streets for three years. The shelter referred her to MHALA, where she found that shower she longed for, a place to eat, and assistance to help her find housing. As she started working with her MHALA team, something sparked inside of her – a distant memory of who she once was. She moved into an apartment and got used to living indoors again, but there was more to be done.

“I was here physically but mentally, I was gone,” she says.

Through MHALA’s strength-based program, Roxanne received therapy, medical treatment, and peer support. When she was ready, she learned about another MHALA service: employment assistance. Roxanne began working as a receptionist and clerk in MHALA’s Antelope Valley Enrichment Services in Lancaster.

“That sparked something in me – it made me start remembering what I used to do and who I was.”

As her confidence started to return, so did her belief that she, like all of us, has value and life experience to share. Today, Roxanne wants to help others the way she was helped.

“I don’t think I would have the life that I now have without MHALA and my peers,” Roxanne says. “MHALA loved me back to life. It was beyond just their programs – their hearts and souls were in it.”

Every day, your support makes success stories like Roxanne’s possible. We believe that each individual has the capacity to come back from a dark place, recover at their own pace, and thrive.