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Jacksonville woman turns family-owned business into mental health clinic

“I really want to be doing this for my people, my hometown, local people."

CHEROKEE COUNTY, Texas — A new mental health clinic is now open to serve the people in Jacksonville and surrounding areas. 

Owner and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, Kristy Perry says she’s always wanted to open her own business in her hometown. 

“I really want to be doing this for my people, my hometown, local people,” said Perry. “I just remembered that there is no psychiatric private practice that I know of in Cherokee County, other than the Community Health Clinic, which is ACCESS so I just pretty much jumped in went for it.” 

On Jan. 17, Perry turned her family business, that was once a beauty shop, into the Be Well Health Center to help serve, not just her community, but a rural community she believes is often underserved. 

“This area is definitely underserved for mental health,” said Perry. “You have to go to Tyler maybe Lufkin, Dallas or Houston, maybe Longview, but rural small towns, East Texas definitely has a need for mental health services.”

Since the pandemic, mental health professionals say they’re seeing an increase in clients coping with the struggles that life can bring.

“Most often it’s depression and anxiety, I think anxiety is just triggered by the stress that we all live in especially if you have an underline tendency to be an anxious person you compound that with stress, expectation, responsibility it’s just a rush lifestyle everybody is living,” said Perry. 

Perry’s clinic provides a special medicine treatment regimen to clients, as she works to add non-pharmaceutical strategies as her business grows. 

“I offer psychiatric evaluation and recommendation for treatment. So as a nurse practitioner, I am my primary role is medication management,” said Perry. “Some clients, may not need medications may not be willing to take medications, I'm completely open to non-pharmaceutical strategies for management of symptoms, such as therapy and other holistic practices.” 

For clients seeking non-pharmaceutical treatment, Mission Partners provides in-person treatment three times a week through therapy and group sessions. 

“One thing that we see a lot through here is that people think that their the only ones that have this problem and then they come into a room with three or four other people that are also struggling and they go it’s okay I can see that I’m not only in this,” said Ben Turney, Case Managing Partner with Misson Partner Services. 

By continuing to have an open conversation on the importance of mental health. Perry hopes her facility will inspire other small communities to join in on the conversation.

“It's very important to continue this type of work,” said Perry. I think that it will inspire others to maybe venture out on their own path and provide services in the rural areas.” 

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