I learned of Joanna "JoJo" Levesque in 2004 when her debut song, "Leave (Get Out)" blew up on the charts. I was eleven at the time, so seeing a twelve/thirteen-year-old make such a splash at damn-near the same age as me was inspiring. I BEGGED to get JoJo's debut album when it came out and, thanks to Grandma's Kmart employee...[ read more ]

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. While working on my memoir yesterday, I found myself reflecting on my earliest memories of mental illness. My first encounter with a diagnosed mental health disorder happened when I was 11. My mother was dating Bryce, who would later become her husband. One afternoon, my mother, Bryce, his son, and I were in the...[ read more ]

Acamea Deadwiler is a gifted storyteller, and her new memoir, Daddy’s Little Stranger, made me feel understood and even brought me to healing tears. “Releasing my tears would only compound the humiliation. I knew there would be no consoling hugs. We weren’t that kind of family.” Daddy’s Little Stranger takes readers on a journey set in Gary, Indiana, which for a...[ read more ]

As a Black and biracial person, I was thrilled when Mya Jayn, my mixed-race daughter, was gifted a copy of More Than Peach by Bellen Woodard to add to her library. I'm excited to share what I learned as I read this book to MJ. More Than Peach is a story written by a child about her experiences in elementary...[ read more ]

Johnzelle speaks with Jessica from The Mental Health Emergency Fund about the stigma surrounding mental health. Check out the episode here: https://mentalhealthemergencyfund.com/johnzelle-anderson-2/ Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this, consider supporting my creative work by buying me a coffee or a book from my wishlist. Thanks in advance!

As a therapist, grief is something I encounter often. Earlier this year, one of my clients, Diane, experienced a series of events that felt like something out of a soap opera. When the dust settled, she found herself widowed at the age of 51. I support my clients through email between sessions. Earlier this week, Diane posed the following questions:...[ read more ]

As a child, I imagined what life would be like once I became old enough to drive and become an adult. As I progressed into my twenties, my perspective on adulthood continued to evolve. I eventually reasoned that the adults who I thought "had it all together" in my childhood were actually just big kids who acquired bills. Like many,...[ read more ]

My anxiety has been especially challenging over the past month. In this post, I’m going to share the various coping and calming strategies I’ve been using to free my mind from the symptoms of anxiety. I resonate deeply with the song, “Free Mind” by Tems, so I’ll include some relevant lyrics throughout the post as well. Exercise My favorite form...[ read more ]

A Visible Man by Edward Enninful was one of a few memoirs that I finished in December. The book is different from most of the memoirs I choose because I had no prior knowledge of who the author was; rather, Audible kept recommending it to me. I'm glad I gave his book a chance and I look forward to sharing...[ read more ]

I've had Fat Joe's new memoir, The Book of Jose, on my Audible wishlist for a while and I finally got around to giving it a listen. As a hip hop fan growing up in the 90s and early 00s, I've kept up with Fat Joe's career. Prior to reading his story, I didn't know much about his personal life...[ read more ]