We had the good fortune of connecting with Linton F. Hester, LPC CPCS and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Linton F., as a parent, what have you done for you children that you feel has had the most significant impact?
Wow! Where can I start? As a father and psychotherapist who values human growth and development, there are numerous things to be said on this topic. I’ll try and keep it succinct with three focal points as it pertains to fathering my handsome brown twin boys. The first impactful act I feel that I have done as a parent is go to therapy. I say this, not as a trend, but as an authentic experience that comes with valuable lessons to show you more of yourself and ways to ameliorate your life and others connected to you. I had to evaluate and re-evaluate myself as a man parenting two precocious little boys. I refused to be dismissive of the reality that old wounds have some measure of influence in how one parent their children. So, I chose to focus on those unhealthy parts within myself that would externalize at times. It wasn’t easy, but I was intentional about targeting those culprits to eliminate remanufacturing the hand-me-downs of brokenness. Among many other responsibilities, my role is also to ensure their development for this world, and to prepare them for their generation and time.

Secondly, children are little people, not little puppets. They have big feelings that they are unequipped to navigate or verbalize. They are independent thinkers, they have a right to be respected, honored, praised, and they too become fixated in their interests and hobbies as we do as adults.They have matters that are significant to their young lives as well. We have these proclivities that suggest that children are only to be seen and not heard. These generational metarules of “do what I say” and “It’s my way or the highway” approaches have been heirlooms of dysfunction. That mechanism has expired and just as technology has become more advanced and sophisticated, so has mental health and emotional intelligence and it is the duty of a parent to prepare children for the complexities of a world that will live on without us. We must do this starting in the home, as family is everyone’s first sense of community.

Lastly, I have learned and continue to learn how to live in their world and value them, affirm them, see them, and lead them. I have given them all the confidence and clearance to be who they are completely and to express themselves in the fullness of excitement, anger, playfulness, laughter, sadness and however they may feel and think. My wife and I validate who they are, how they feel, and we honor them for that and encourage full expression without dismissing, contaminating, amputating, minimizing, or taking away who they are to become in all of their glorious ways of being. As a parent you will always be in competition with the world about your children. One of my favorite quotes is by the late Frederick Douglas, he wrote, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men”. I am bold enough to make mistakes in front of them, allow them to see me recover, admit my wrongs, be emotional, be affectionate and be strong. My best effort is to demonstrate the totality of my humanity as a man, as a black man, and model strong black love to my wife before them so that they may know that Dad’s not superhuman, but a man who happens to do things as a super cool Dad.

What should our readers know about your business?
First, I would like to say thank you for this opportunity to share my passion and story. I appreciate the chance to connect with the readers and supporters of The Atlanta Shoutout. As a Licensed Psychotherapist and Founder of Live.Better.Now!, LLC Counseling Service, I started this venture not fully understanding the depth, privilege and direction this profession would take me. These places have led me into homes, marriages, and the most intimate and sensitive enclave of people’s lives that I serve. I would have to say that in this profession, I am a unicorn. There are less than 1 per cent of African American men in this industry. More geographically, as far as I am aware, I am the only Black male Licensed Psychotherapist with an active private practice in Savannah, Georgia. I am focused on giving quality care for all with a concentration on the melanin community and the global majority population. I thought about representation and ways I could use who I am as a black male psychotherapist, what I do as a language artist and mental health expert, and how I look as it pertains to representation of the melanin community which helps to attract the underserved in this sector to serve them through the element of cultural competence. Being someone in the clinical field who looks like the community – this was one of the imperatives among many other thought processes behind getting started in the private practice business. I chose to hold that paramount to reaching my goal and vision for my practice – which was to provide concentrated, quality care to those who were invisible to the eyes of this industry. In other words that was my WHY. Those of us who continually experienced being misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or even dismissed due to a lack of knowledge and information left a lot of us disempowered.

Within my area of expertise, I facilitate talk therapy, with additional modalities that aid the healing process, which includes sound bowl therapy, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing) as well as marital and pre-marital counseling with unique experience to my method. How I got started in this is that I identified the needs of individuals and families during the 2020 pandemic and how life was taking a psychological and emotional toll on the world around us. Once teletherapy became a phenomenon, that was the impetus that gave access to mental healthcare to those who had limited resources and made therapy a hard find. So, I qualified myself to utilize such a channel to expand my bandwidth and reach beyond my community and throughout the state of Georgia. My steps were to create a virtual platform for reachability and establish a hybrid approach that can serve by giving clients an option of quality therapy, virtually or in-person. What I would like readers to know about my story and my brand is that you don’t have to spin your wheels only to remain stuck in the same pattern of defeat, conflict, unrest and suffering. There are resources such as myself and many others who will help you without judgement, who are trained and licensed to care for you and partner with you on your journey to emotional and psychological wholeness.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would have to say River Street has a great blend of character, scenery, live music, and restaurants. The appeal is surprising because this area is dressed in cobble stone and nostalgia but carries modern undertones that is inviting for couples, families, singles, and groups. I would have to include the Bohemian Rooftop that captures the view of the bridge stretching across the river with a lit sky and good food. Also visiting the ever-busy Forsyth park and the experience of Black Heritage Festival, Jazz Festivals along with St. Patrick’s Day events. I can’t forget about the Plant Riverside Entertainment District, Riverboat Cruise, Ghost Tours, and Downtown Broughton Street full of shops and eateries. There is so much history and life in Savannah that keeps tourists and families revisiting each year. So, if you’re ever in town, try it and reach out to me in case you need any good recommendations.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would like to recognize my sensational friend and wife of 25 years, Chantelle, along with my twin sons (Langston & Landon), these three are my hope, my inspiration, and my reason. I must give credit to my late parents, Gladys M. Hester & Vietnam Veteran, MSG Leroy Hester. My brothers who always keep me grounded, uplifted, and loved. For those who took the time to share their skillset, experience and knowledge in this field that has allowed me to flourish in this humble way. Thank you. I see you!

Website: www.livebetternow.net

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/livebetternow/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/livebetternow/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LiveBetterNowTherapy

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@livebetternowtherapy

Image Credits
Photographer: Shawn Bullock, Aspect 4:32

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