Meet Candice Sundstrom, a current Peer Support Personnel and Mentor at the Norooz Clinic in Santa Ana, CA. Originally from Maryland, she pursued a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in School Counseling. She spent 14 glorious years as a School Counselor in Baltimore, where she dedicated her career to positively impacting the lives and educations of young students. Tapping into her creative side, to assist students and staff in remembering her name, she created a pin that she wore of a sun strumming a guitar. Still in touch with many of her former students to this day, she is reminded fondly of this image. She is currently retired from that position, but as she always says, “once a counselor, always a counselor,” and makes herself available regularly if needed.
With a farm upbringing until the fourth grade, a passion for snowboarding, a pitbull named Athena, and a whimsical affection for Hello Kitty, Candice embraces life with a colorful tapestry of experiences. She continues to engage in new adventures and has a passion for helping others.
Questions:
What does mental health mean to you?
Why the Norooz Clinic Foundation (NCF)?
Tell your personal story about how your mental health has impacted your life. How did
you cope with it or overcame it?
When I was 26 years old, my father was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. Upon hearing the news, I was in shock, in a daze, felt like my brain “froze.” I struggled with performing regular, daily tasks in both my personal and professional lives. After a month or so, I sought out a therapist to speak to regarding my feelings of hopelessness and helplessness. It was then that it was recommended that I see a psychiatrist to help further in managing these feelings. Through talk therapy and medication, I was able to work through the stages of grief that interfered so intensely with my daily living. I was able to physically, mentally, and emotionally support my dying father until his last breath. If I had not focused on my mental health, I’d imagine my job would have been compromised, as well as my relationship with my only parent, my father. May he rest in peace.