Tag Archives: Birmingham Alabama

Surviving the Holiday Blues

November 14, 2019 1 comment Healthy Living, Mental Health Birmingham, Birmingham Alabama, Christmas, drleesha, holidays, Mental Health, Thanksgiving, wellness Dr. Leesha

I’ll have a blue Christmas “Happy holidays!” I sing to those coming to see me for their doctor’s appointment. Sometimes my cheery refrain is met with an equally joyous “Happy holidays, doc” but other times I get “I hate the holidays. My parents are dead. My kids don’t visit me. I have no one and nothing to look forward to” or “I don’t have any money to buy Christmas gifts for my family.” For many, the holiday season is a time of stress, loneliness, and dread; it’s NOT the most wonderful time of the year of which Andy Williams sings. Instead, […]

My First Best Friend

October 9, 2019 1 comment Family Birmingham, Birmingham Alabama, drleesha Dr. Leesha

October 6, 2019, marked a most splendid occasion. My baby sister celebrated her 40th birthday. Turn up! Like most decade birthdays, turning the big 4-0 is major, invoking a time for meaningful reflection of what once was (bemoaning our youth as it slowly fades), what is (celebrating the beautiful life we have created), and what will be (stirring up hopes and fears for an uncertain future as we grow older). For me, my sister’s 40th birthday pokes and prods, a clear reminder of my own waning youth as 50 looms in the background. But her birthday also reminds of the […]

Mommying Unashamed in these streets

September 2, 2019 4 comments Motherhood, Parenting Birmingham, Birmingham Alabama, drleesha, moms, motherhood, Parenting, parenting truth Dr. Leesha

An ode to all the real mommas up in here, up in here! Sometimes I’m patient, but sometimes I yellI’m trying my best, but these kids can’t tell I’m mommying unashamedI didn’t plan my escape in the middle of the nightThis would have left them in a state of fright I’m mommying unashamedDon’t ask me what’s for dinnerI ain’t figured it outYes, I know it’s 7 pm on a school nightCereal it is or we’re all doing without I’m mommying unashamed I forgot to sign the permission slipI forgot to fund your lunch accountThese kids keep pestering meI’m so behind […]

Bidding Adieu to Odyssey: A Mother’s Ode to Preschool

July 31, 2019 5 comments Motherhood, Parenting Birmingham, Birmingham Alabama, children, Dr. Leesha Ellis-Cox, drleesha, education, Parenting, positive parenting Dr. Leesha

Defining Odyssey Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines an odyssey as a “long wandering or voyage usually marked by many changes of fortune” or “an intellectual or spiritual wandering or quest.” Aptly named, our preschool, Odyssey Early School, captures the journey our children took as they transitioned from infancy to toddler to preschooler. Fast forward to 2019, and we’ve done this thing 3 times. Our youngest recently graduated from Odyssey. Our Tenure at Odyssey 3 babies from 2009 – 2019. Our tenure at Odyssey has spanned an entire decade. I’ll admit, I was terrified initially. We had just moved to Alabama from Charlotte, […]

Worried & Praying? Struggles of the Anxious Christian

February 5, 2019 1 comment Anxiety, Faith, Mental Health Anxiety, Birmingham, Birmingham Alabama, Doubt, Dr. Leesha, Dr. Leesha Ellis-Cox, Faith, Fear, harvesting hope, Mental Health, Mental Illness Education, Psychiatrist Dr. Leesha

While I don’t remember the first time someone said this to me, I have certainly heard this saying many, many times and have spoken these words internally: “If you’re going to pray, don’t worry. If you’re going to worry, don’t pray.” So, what does this mean for the anxious Christian? Am I lacking faith if I worry? Does my worry dishonor God and His infinite wisdom and power? Am I making my problems bigger than my God? These are the questions that have plagued me, especially as I have grown closer to God and matured spiritually. I worry, too I […]

STOP Mommy Shaming

January 29, 2019 0 comments Mental Health, Parenting, Uncategorized Birmingham, Birmingham Alabama, children, Dr. Leesha, Dr. Leesha Ellis-Cox, moms, motherhood, Parenting, positive parenting Dr. Leesha

Nobody’s Safe On the playgrounds, at the local Target, in your schools – nowhere feels safe. Mommy-shamers and internet trolls are watching, lurking, and judging. These shamers come for both regular and celebrity moms. The Kardashian sisters are particularly popular. Moms blasted Kourtney Kardashian because her son, Reign, wears his hair long. They bad-mouthed Khloe Kardashian when her infant daughter, True, was photographed playing in an ultra-expensive Birkin bag. Kim Kardashian let her oldest daughter, North, wear lipstick for holiday family photos, and the trolls unleased their fury. Then there was Carrie Underwood who was roasted for wearing a full […]

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