Wellness in the Worlkplace, with Dr. Shatavia Thomas

Dr. Shatavia Thomas, an Atlanta-native and owner of Dr. Shay Speaks, LLC, is a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) with over 20 years of experience as a mental health professional and over 10 years of experience in higher education. Her specialties include emotional intimacy, healthy communication, grief, spirituality, work-life rhythm, parenting, adjustment to injury and chronic illness, caregiving, holistic wellness, life transitions, identity and performance, family of origin concerns, family business dynamics, and sports and entertainment families. As a strengths-based therapist, she is compassionate, curious, collaborative, and creative. In addition to working with clients in therapy, Dr. Shay also offers contractual and pro bono services to nonprofits, churches, schools, hospitals, and media outlets as a consultant, writer, editor, and speaker. In addition, she has self-published two volumes of poetry and offers pop-up fitness classes as a beginner mat Pilates instructor.

 

Dr. Shay will summarize her 2024 article published in Family Therapy Magazine on mental health in the workplace. The article centers Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory on human development as a systemic framework for understanding holistic factors impacting wellbeing and underscores implications of MFT principles. Reflecting on her personal and professional journey, she will highlight the impact of individual factors, relational dynamics, organizational components, and cultural nuances in work settings. She will identify barriers to mental health and offer systemic solutions for both optimizing wellbeing and fostering workplace wellness.