What was your path to becoming a mental health provider?

My path to becoming a therapist has been an interesting one. I have a BFA in sculpture from Ohio University. But, after college I went into retail insurance and finance, becoming an agent and financial adviser, finding my way to Sedona. I started a family and purchased a home during the real estate run up of 2005. Then, I became displaced and disenchanted with the financial industry in 2008. To survive, I went to work for a Catholic parish, made art, worked for an electrician, and bought a laundromat. In the library of the church I met a group of elderly women who practiced centering prayer, a Christian form of mindfulness. I thought that I might want to be a therapist and teach mindfulness, so I went to work for a Buddhist monk.