Meet Sonny Etienne | Psychotherapist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sonny Etienne and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sonny, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I always envisioned that at some point in life I would leave the private sector and start a business of my own. I didn’t know what that business would be but I knew it would be in the helping profession. I worked at a psychiatric facility for 5 years. During that time, patients would often ask if they could see me in private practice. In addition, many colleagues of mines felt I do well as a private practitioner. This led me to developing a clinical approach unique to my style and theoretical orientation. The freedom of making my own rules, schedule and earning potential was a welcoming thought behind creating my private practice.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
By profession, I’m a mental health therapist but at heart I’m an artist. First and always, creativity has been my life and continues to be to this day. As a painter, sketch artist, sculptor, the arts always been what I come back to. Therapy is no different. My role as a therapist is similar to that of an artist. Therapy is a creative process in which I were collaboratively work with a fellow artists (clients/patients) on the collages of their lives. Together, we unravel the tapestry of their experiences. Moreover, we extract and draw from their pains. There’s nothing but joy in bringing color to the sometimes lifeless and black and white worlds of the many people I’ve been blessed to help. My profession is never boring because it is art, which is life.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My visiting best friend would have to brace her or hmself for culture. And that begins with Haitian culture. We’d make a stop by Broward’s Best bakery in North Lauderdale for breakfast. After that, we had a little North to my tamarack office and hang out and play some PlayStation or chess. Then we’d stick with the taste of the Caribbean over at Donna’s Jamaican restaurant for lunch. Now that you’re full, we probably go play some ball at the nearby basketball court. The fun wouldn’t stop there, we’d head to the African-American research library on Sistrunk boulevard for some history and learning experience. But if you want the real taste of Sonny, we have to head down to my backyard North Miami. We’d find our way through the bustling Haitian community making stops at local basketball parks where I honed my skills back in High School. Got to dropby my mother’s for freshing up and catching up. I imagine weed corrals my old stomping grounds for the purpose of nostalgia. And reminisce about milestones in my early life based on the multiple stops we’d make for sightseeing. Perhaps, I’d pay a visit to the Bible bookstore down on 125th Street. Although, unlikely. I might even venture to Aventura or cruise down to South Beach for a quick tour only to head northbound back to Broward to end the day picking up an extra extra large one from Frank’s Pizza. What can I say I’m a simple guy with a taste for simple things.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There are too many names to mention of my achievements. But I’ll start off with none other than my mother. She instilled in me the values of hard work and to strive after more and never settling. I’m greatly indebted to my four sisters. They each touched my life and unique ways. I’ve been inspired by teachers and my youth, pastors and mentors. And of course, my wife of 17 years has been another source of inspiration. Together she and I have brought three daughters into this world. They are now my inspiration. But they’re not alone, the countless people I have treated over the years have been a blessing to me as much as I hope I’ve been a blessing to them. I give all the above mention the credit and recognition for the roles they played in my story. Above all, I owe everything to my maker. I believe in providence; nothing in my life was or is an accident.

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