Meet Trailblazer Heather Brooke Meyer

Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather Brooke Meyer.

Heather, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was born and raised in central Texas and started competing in beauty pageants when I was five years old. As a little girl dreamed of being Miss America, a model, actress and singer when I grew up. Pretty ambitious goals for a little girl from a small country town in the middle of nowhere. Even more ambitious goals after I developed a mental health disorder when I was 10 called Trichotillomania, which caused me to pull out my own hair. The disorder, I believe was directly related to trauma and was my way of releasing the trauma and became my coping skill. I grew up with fairly low self-esteem, although I tried to put on a brave face. I started with my eyelashes, moved to my eyebrows and eventually my head. By my junior year in high school, I had no eyelashes, no eyebrows and was wearing a wig to cover my almost bald head. I stayed active in school with my church youth group, volleyball, basketball, tennis, baton twirling, cheerleading, student council, and UIL; but emotionally, I was a wreck. By mid-way through my senior year, I had stopped pulling the hair on my head enough that I could get a short pixie cut and was able to go to my senior prom and graduate with my own hair.

Fast forward a few years, a couple more traumatic events and a daughter later and I found myself in southern Colorado, where my parents had relocated the year after I graduated high school. My baby girl was 6 months old and I wanted to be closer to them. I went to work for my dad’s business. He has always had a very good work ethic (actually, he’s a workaholic and that is his coping skill), so working hard comes pretty natural to me, as does my desire to make things happen… including my dreams. After splitting up with my daughter’s father, I began a relationship with my ex-husband that lasted nearly 10 years. In that time, I became active in my community, serving as on our Chamber of Commerce (President & VP), serving on the South Fork Music Association Board, Tu Casa’s Children’s Advocacy Center Capital Campaign Committee and found the San Luis Valley Break the Cycle 5K and Scholarship to promote dating and domestic violence awareness.

During that time, I also earned my AA in Business and BS in Psychology online through the University of Phoenix and earned my MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Adams State University. We found out I was expecting my youngest daughter a year into my master’s program and after graduating, I began my own private practice and went to work for a mental health center working with children and families. After my divorce, I relocated to northern Colorado, where I went to work as a child and family therapist and then transitioned into neurofeedback. I currently work at Neurofeedback Clinic of Northern Colorado and have my own private practice. After relocating to northern Colorado, this is when I really started seeing my dreams manifest. I found a church home that fills me up, something I had been previously lacking since high school. I began competing in pageants again and while looking for sponsors came across Hair Club. They not only sponsored me in my pageant, but they also made me a brand ambassador and have included me in advertisements and their current infomercial. With their sponsorship, I was crowned Ms. Woman Colorado United States 2017 (not Miss America, but it was close enough for me). That has all spiraled into me being on national television on ABC’s The Proposal, a feature-length film, Final Transit, being published in magazines and walking a number of runways. My childhood dreams began coming true.

Through all this though, one of my greatest accomplishments and things I’m so proud of is the book I wrote as a therapist. After failed attempts at locating a book on Trichotillomania that I could share with a child client of mine, I decided to use my personal experience to write a book on the disorder for children that therapists could use to talk to children and their families about the disorder. I sat down in my office one afternoon after having seen this client and in 10 minutes had my boo written. I sent the story to mom and asked her if she could draw me some illustrations and told her what I wanted. After we had all that, I found a publishing company to publish the book and my book, Where’s My Hair? A Trichotillomania Story for children was released in August 2018. Prior to releasing the book, Hair Club invited me to come speak at the annual BFRB Conference on my disorder, my experience with Hair Club and to share information about my upcoming book with attendees.

After publication, Hair Club purchased 400 copies of my book to make it part of their Hair Club for Kids program and every child who comes into Hair Club for Kids gets a free copy of my book. Through this program, I met an amazing little girl named Alyssa, who was given my book by Hair Club and then she and her mom purchased additional books from me for her to distribute in her community to raise awareness around the disorder. The messages I get from people who didn’t know their disorder had a name, who wish there had been a book for them when they were kids and the kids who are currently benefiting from it are a true blessing. I prayed to God nightly as a child, teenager and often as an adult to take the disorder away; but what I thought was a disability or set back, has proven to be the thing that has made me and made my dreams a reality.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There were tons of obstacles for me along my journey. Trauma, divorce, children, living in a small rural community, being a single mom, my own self-esteem, self-image and faith in myself were all obstacles for me; in addition to others who said I would never get here, I needed to stop dreaming, I needed to be realistic, etc. How did I overcome all that? I started working on myself. I started putting myself first and became okay with the idea that I can be put first sometimes and that when I’m my best self, I’m better for those around me. I learned it’s not selfish to chase your dreams and goals, to put yourself first when necessary and that it isn’t vain to have faith in yourself. The first step to success is small steps every single day. You don’t have to get there overnight. It’s not going to happen overnight. One small step every single day gets you one day closer to that dream or goal. And if you don’t succeed, it’s not a failure. Look at it as a learning opportunity, figure out what you can or should do differently and try again. Try again and again and again. No matter how many times you fail, keep trying; because you learn the most from those failures.

What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
I am a behavioral therapist and neurofeedback specialist by profession. The thing I’m most proud of is my book, “Where’s My Hair? A Trichotillomania Story for Children” and the difference that it is making in people’s lives. What sets me apart from others as a therapist, is that I have an amazing tool with neurofeedback to help others. Neurofeedback is a great enhancement to traditional therapy that everyone can benefit from.

What’s the most important piece of advice you could give to a young woman just starting her career?
As I stated before, don’t see failure as a failure; view it as a learning opportunity. Use it to learn about yourself, the situation, the business. Whatever the circumstance learn from it. The other thing is don’t expect it to happen overnight. Have your overall large dream or goal for your career, but know that it is going to take baby steps to get there and develop a daily strategy that includes at least one thing you can do daily to move you one step closer to that goal, dream or career.

Pricing:

• Where’s My Hair? A Trichotillomania Story for Children – $10.99

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.facebook.com/TTMBookforChildren/
• Phone: 719-480-1525
• Email: heathermeyerlpc@gmail.com
• Instagram: @heatherdmeyer @heathermeyerlpc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VictoryCounselingServices/

Image Credit:
Britni Girard Photography

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