Our Origins Story
About Us
From a young age, I (Dr. Teresa Y. Chapa-Cantu) knew I wanted to help others. But, I originally had planned to help animals. Growing up in my family of 5, I saw how hard my parents worked to give us all the necessities of Life. I didn't know we didn't have as much as others then, but I knew we had more than my mother did growing up as an immigrant from Mexico, and my father, who also grew up in poverty. My parents taught me the value of an education and always encouraged me to work hard in school so I could eventually live out my dream to be "anything" I wanted to be.
With their undying emotional support and encouragement, I became the first in my immediate family to earn a Bachelor's degree, and eventually the first one in both my extended families to earn a doctorate degree. As I was approaching my final graduation, I met a friend of my father's who shook my hand firmly and told me, "Congratulations! You should be very proud, because you're not only doing this for you, but you're doing this for All of us Chicanos." It was then that I realized the amount of responsibility I carried - to do my best for every Latino(a) who came before me, who also had worked hard to get to where they were in life, and who had paved the way for me. I realized that this man had symbolically passed a torch to me, to take advantage of all the opportunities, skills, knowledge, and gifts that I had been afforded in my own life in order to pave the way for others who would come after me. And ultimately, it was on me to offer my best in return for the community that had afforded me all of this.
After I decided to become a psychologist (and not a veterinarian - although I do have pets!), it became my dream to open a community mental health center ... and as you see, we are here. Resiliency Psychological Center LLC is a small but growing private practice with clinicians and staff who really care about every client. I have specifically chosen every person who works with me because of their unique skills, talents, and kindness. We all share a passion to help our community, to the best of our abilities with the resources available to us. At Resiliency Psychological Center LLC, we know that YOU have a story, too, and we want to hear yours.
