Talking Providing Mental Health Care With a Disability

StorytellingNewsPodcast
Written By The Phoenix Empowered

Disability After Dark — hosted by Andrew Gurza

In this powerful and deeply personal episode of Disability After Dark, host and disability advocate Andrew Gurza sits down with José Rosario, a mental health provider, researcher, and founder of The Phoenix Empowered. Together, they explore the intersections of disability, identity, and culturally responsive mental health care — challenging who is seen as “the expert” in therapeutic settings.

José opens up about growing up as a queer, disabled Puerto Rican person with Cerebral Palsy, sharing how his lived experience continues to shape his approach as a clinician and storyteller. From navigating inaccessible systems to confronting societal biases within the therapy world, José and Andrew highlight both the barriers and the transformative strengths that disabled therapists bring into mental health spaces.

Listen Here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2PkzkiB7M1EeYlUpFlUbVW

The Phoenix Empowered

The Phoenix Empowered is a storytelling-and-education organization dedicated to amplifying the voices of minoritized communities and advancing inclusive mental-health conversations. We believe in the power of connection, creativity, and community to inspire change. Through our platform, we invite individuals to share their stories, explore identity, and engage in vulnerability with no stigma attached. Our work is rooted in the philosophy that “taking stock of who we are gives us power.”

Whether through personal narrative, art, discussion, or activism, The Phoenix Empowered meets individuals where they are — and rises together.

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