Today we’d like to introduce you to Edith Caballero.
Hi Edith, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My story starts in 2013 when my ex-fiance died of suicide. Prior to that, I had finished graduate school in clinical social work and was working as a hospice social worker supporting patients and families who were facing a terminal condition. I was practically starting my life – we had moved in together, we had our wedding date, and considering the possibility of having children someday. After his death, I fell into prolonged grief, mourning, confusion, and eventually, clinical depression, PTSD, and generalized anxiety. Prior to his death, I had lost my mother to cancer in 2010 and Benjamin (my ex-fiance) felt like my rock when she had left. I never imagined having ever to experience his death a few years later. I say all this because even though these experiences were impactful, they gave me a deeper insight to mental health, the impact on trauma, stress, and wellness. These experiences have allowed me to help individuals for years as a clinical social worker (therapist) as I held space for others and continue to do so. I also began my own mental health journey in which I continue to learn from, evolve, and follow my intuition. I had to rebuild my life, literally. My savings were gone as I was financially responsible for his funeral and other arrangements and a year after his death, I decided to travel and went backpacking through south and Central America. A decision I felt was needed as I felt lost and in traveling, I found a new sense of freedom. My life shattered and every day, I picked up one more piece and built myself together. There are times till this day that I feel I shatter multiple times in a day, and still, I pick up the pieces because I deserve and desire to be at peace with myself and that means sometimes fighting for myself or surrendering to myself in those critical moments. I have had many volunteer experiences I have been part of including being part of the National Association of Social Workers where I was their Miami-Dade Chapter president from 2015-2017, to starting Florida’s first peer support group for social workers and mental health professionals in 2017, to starting Self Care for a Cause, a special project that supports communities to take care of themselves. I love my life and how I can create and recreate myself everyday, I am very blessed for this interview and am honored.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, not a smooth road at all. There are times that I have thought about death because I couldn’t sit with myself. I learned to do so yet it has and continues to have its challenges. I developed mental health and physical symptoms I never thought I would experience. I don’t want to say that my traumatic experiences have shaped me, however, I have learned profoundly from them. I am fortunate however that I didn’t stop seeking recovery, healing, community, and love. I kept going because I knew the life I wanted, and I didn’t want my past to define it for me.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I work as a psychotherapist and focus my practice on supervising the next generation of therapists and providing psychotherapy to those affected by anxiety, those who are helping professionals, and those who have experienced emotional wounding in their life span. I think what sets me apart is that I’m real with my clients – you get what you see, and I tell it to them how it is. I don’t hold back unless we haven’t built the rapport but for the most part, I genuinely care for the individuals I hold space for therapeutically. Brand-wise, I am not sure – I guess I am the brand and I strive to embody my values – radical compassion, communion, honor, trust, and empowerment.
I also started a special project called Self Care for a Cause. The project supports communities to take care of themselves. South Florida volunteers offer a monthly free self-care experience and in exchange, we ask for participants to donate (any amount they wish) to our cause of the month. Our mission is to promote the deepest level of self-care, compassion – one that starts with ourselves and extends to our community. I started it in 2020 when a colleague and I facilitated a yoga and reiki-infused meditation class and offered it for free to collect donations for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). We fundraised over $1600 that day and I felt inclined to keep the momentum going.
I also launched my creative business and something that was an idea during my mental health crisis/breakdown/breakthrough in 2020 – Lotus Love Box. An idea that launched recently. Lotus Love Box is a mental health care package company. The packages I create are uniquely hand-crafted, with love and reiki, to help individuals in their mental health recovery. I use poetically inspired writing, organic products, stress reduction elements, and metaphysical and yogic-inspired philosophies to dedicate a holistic package for anyone in their journey. Part of the company’s name, Lotus Love, is symbolical of the struggle for mental health recovery. The lotus flower grows in the deep mud, far away from the sun. With its roots latched in mud, it submerges every night into river water and miraculously re-blooms the next morning as the most beautiful flower. Throughout many cultures, the flower is regarded as a symbol of enlightenment, self-regeneration, and rebirth. Its characteristics are a perfect analogy for the struggle of mental health conditions as many have faced the darkness and struggle to re-emerge every day yet do their best to do so. The pink lotus is referred as the most sacred and beautiful of them all.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up.
My favorite childhood memory was visiting Nicaragua – my mother’s birth country. I was 10 when I first visited and felt it was a magical experience to get on an airplane, see the volcanoes as we were landing, meet family I had never met, eat good food, and play all day. My mom really enjoyed it as it was her first time traveling back since she had left in 1984. She hadn’t seen her family for over 15 years.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.edithcaballero.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/selfcareforacausemiami/
- Other:www.lotuslovebox.com
