I Am Not My Sister's Keeper....I Am My Sister-Friend

The author again bares her soul as she struggles to balance her life along with her DNA of depression and anxiety. The stigma of mental health causes her to fight back to regain control of her life as a professional Black Woman. She tells her truth using her S factors: Suffering, Surrendering, Surviving, Spiritual and Selfie. It is her circle of Sister Keepers who reach out with the hand of hope. She takes us on a journey through her professional and personal life relationships which causes her anguish as she deals with the first unimaginable trial of her life…the possible loss of her Mother. This event triggers her descent into the dark hole of no return.

The author opens her soul revealing the mental, and emotional attacks that took her into darkness, something she thought she would never recover from. In her fight, she speaks of Angels or Sister Friends sent to her by God in her darkest moments that helped her remain in the physical world. My Sister's Keeper reveals the Author's world of racism, disappointments workplace letdowns and spirituality as she tries to be the best person for others. As she travels through each dilemma, she often refocuses drawing on her faith in God to seek the positives in life and accept her new role to help others like herself. She opens the window for the reader to understand the world of Mental Health with a focus on Depression which is a makeup of her DNA.

Melissa attended Unity High School in Chicago, Illinois. Unity, an all-girls school, fostered sisterhood amongst its' students. It was at Unity where Melissa was introduced to becoming a sister to other girls. Her Post-Secondary Education was at Columbia College of Chicago, Illinois where she earned A Bachelor of Arts Degree. A giver, she continued to be self-sacrificing eventually entering the US Peace Corps. There she worked as a volunteer at the Princess Basma Center for Women in Amman Jordan. She chose to work with young girls in a mentoring program which taught business skills such as sales, marketing, consumer service, household management and healthcare. Being a Woman in Jordan, Melissa found her work to be challenging in its' male dominating culture. Upon returning to America, Melissa continued to mentor girls in the community. Listening to God's Wisdom, she wrote her first book "A Daughter's DNA, Life Phases which open the door to her world of mental health challenges. Today she is now a Mental Health Professional… a Sister Keeper sharing her understanding and purpose to others in her never-ending life journey to maintain her healing.