Today, we’d like to introduce you to Tomas Altamirano. Tomas was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented Crystal Valdez.
Tomas , thank you so much for joining us today. We’d love for you to bring our readers up to speed – can you introduce yourself and share your story?
I was born and raised in Fort Worth, so I consider it my home and probably where I’ll stay forever! I was raised by my parents who are both Mexican, but only my mom was born in Mexico. They were the epitome of hard-working parents that wanted to ensure a bright future for their kids, and my older and sister and I can probably agree that they were successful! Growing up we were told by everyone that we needed to stay in school to make sure we get good jobs, and we both took that to heart. Aside from actually completing a college education, another challenge came in deciding what I wanted to do. I got a pretty good idea of that after I got therapy in my early teens. I was so grateful for the help my therapist provided, that I wanted to give back to others the same way. From then on I set out to become a therapist, but it wasn’t until I got some critical advice from my sociology professor that I chose the path of a social work degree. It would take less time to actually become a therapist, and social work covers a wider range of topics and emphasizes social justice! It was in that same sociology class that I realized I was agender, so it works out that I chose a path that could help myself and others in multiple ways. Once I finished grad school and started working, I learned hard and fast how much more growing I needed to do to be the therapist I felt people deserved. Luckily after two years of being an outpatient therapist, I got the opportunity to work as a private practice therapist and I felt confident enough in my abilities to go for it! That’s pretty much how I got to where I am today as a private practice therapist!
Let’s talk about your work and career – what else should we know?
As a private practice therapist, I have the opportunity to help people process through some of their most painful experiences while also teaching them techniques that’ll enhance the rest of their lives! I so grateful to help people on their mental health journey, and the most rewarding thing is seeing their progression. Therapists aren’t magic, so we can’t make depression disappear, but we are able go help people manage the rest of their lives more effectively! Helping people learn how to accept that and accept themselves is endlessly rewarding. As far as what sets me apart, I’m one of the only agender therapists that me and anyone I’ve spoken to has ever heard of! That gives me the unique ability to understand multiple perspectives, since at a baseline I don’t assign gender roles or expectations on anyone. So many LGBTQ+ people come to me because they just want someone who is not only going to not question their identity, but is also going to be able to largely understand their identity right out of the gate! This has also led me to start my own free LGBTQ+ support group to be able to extend the scope of my work. Aside from that, I also like to believe I have a sense of humor and a laid-back attitude that many people find refreshing in a therapist.
So, as we mentioned to our audience earlier, you were introduced to us by Crystal Valdez and Dose of Changes, LLC and we really admire them and what they’ve built. For folks who might not be as familiar, can you tell them a bit about your experience with Dose of Changes, LLC.
Oh gosh, I have nothing but tremendous praise to give to Crystal. She’s one of the hardest working therapists I know and I’ve been impressed by her since day one. She joined the outpatient team at the hospital we worked at after maybe a year of me working there. I could already tell how much she cared about what she did from watching how much work she was putting in at the office. She was more diligent with planning her group therapy lessons than many people who had already been working there, and I was so impressed by her ability to push patients hard in therapy and get effective results. I wish I could more specific memories. but my memory can be spotty. What does stick out to me the most is the first week I met her and the time before she left the outpatient hospital we both worked at. When she first arrived, she was quite friendly and confident! I could almost sense the aura of competency she had, like she could step up to any challenge that came her way. Towards the end of her time at the hospital, she was kind of going through a lot and I could see what kind of toll that was taking on her. Even so, I could tell she would still persevere and come out better on the other side. I was already familiar with how taxing it was to work as an outpatient therapist, so I admired how strong her spirit was being able to handle this job AND go through her own stuff. What I learned from Crystal is that I didn’t have to hold back so much as a therapist. Since I was so young (still am I suppose), I was always hesitant to push people harder from fear that my current experience wouldn’t be sufficient. Seeing her be able to do what I was afraid of definitely inspired me! I learned I could be more bold than I was if I trusted my abilities more, and I still carry that with me.
Something that I’m also grateful for is that Crystal and I are actually great friends now! A few of us at the hospital were around the same age, and I seem to remember it was Crystal and our other friend Jocelyn’s idea to all go out to dinner one day. I’d never gone out with coworkers before then, so I’m very glad I got to connect with them that day! I think that was such a helpful experience that taught me I didn’t have to be as closed off from people as I thought. I’m so thankful to have Crystal be a part of my life, I could sing her praises all day really!
Website: https://www.mindfulpossibilities.org/
Other: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/tomas-altamirano-fort-worth-tx/962257
https://www.meetup.com/mindfulposslgbtq/
Image Credits
@PhotosbyyAmairani
