Felicia Romero, MS, LPC, CAC III
Crisis Response Operations Manager
Mind Springs Health
Felicia Romero is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Certified Addictions Counselor III who joined Mind Springs Health in May of 2012. Felicia has been practicing in the field of mental health, substance abuse and victim advocacy for nearly two decades. Currently, she oversees all of Minds Springs “24/7 Programs” including Mobile Crisis Services, the Women’s Recovery Center, and the detox, peer respite, and circle programs. When Felicia talks about the programs she oversees, her eyes light up and it’s clear she’s in a profession she loves and is called to.
Getting here was not a simple feat for Felicia and her story is powerful because there are so many reasons why she shouldn’t have made it. At 34, Felicia found herself divorced with her two young boys and a rare autoimmune disease that put her in a wheelchair. At the time, she did not know why she was sick and began living off her hard-earned retirement while she worked with doctor after doctor to discover what was causing her declining health.
“I paid for landscaping for my home with beer. I bought new windows for my house with beer. But the amount of physical labor at Anheuser-Busch was excruciating and after I got sick, I knew I couldn’t keep working there.”
A year prior, Felicia had just completed her twelfth year working at Anheuser-Busch, a job that had great health and retirement benefits and “beer perks.” She recalls with humor: “If we broke a safety record, we received free cases of beer. If we had zero stops on the assembly line, we received free cases of beer. If we showed up to work every day without calling in sick, we received free cases of beer. The beer perks were amazing,” Felicia laughs. “Sometimes I would have to borrow a friend’s pickup to get my beer at the end of each month, and I began to barter beer for things I needed because I didn’t even drink beer,” Felicia continues. “I paid for landscaping for my home with beer. I bought new windows for my house with beer. But the amount of physical labor at Anheuser-Busch was excruciating and after I got sick, I knew I couldn’t keep working there.”
Her autoimmune disease— which required chemotherapy, numerous steroid treatments, and countless surgeries was finally diagnosed by Felicia’s nineteenth doctor who prayed with her before beginning any medical treatment— forced her to consider a new career, a career that did not require constant physical labor and would most likely require a college degree.
Felicia enrolled at Aims Community College at the age of 37 to begin working on general education coursework any 4-year degree would require. She then transferred to Colorado State University to pursue her bachelor’s degree. During her time at CSU, she remembers, “one of the buildings was not handicap accessible, there wasn’t a ramp or an elevator, so the football team carried me up to class in my wheelchair.”
“My oldest son told me when he was in middle school that college wasn’t for him so you can imagine my shock and pride when I realized that my example influenced his choice.”
Felicia knew that going to college during this difficult time in her life would be a challenge, but ultimately, she knew she would never regret her decision.
She didn’t expect that her decision to pursue an undergraduate degree would influence her oldest son, but it did. “My oldest son told me when he was in middle school that college wasn’t for him so you can imagine my shock and pride when I realized that my example influenced his choice.” Adrian applied and was accepted to the University of Northern Colorado while Felicia was in her second year of college at CSU. She transferred to UNC where both she and her oldest son graduated 2 years apart.
The accomplishment of earning her BA was momentous, but Felicia’s boys are always an equal source of pride: “Another highlight was graduating from UNC with my BA in Psychology the very same year my youngest son, Devin, graduated from high school.”
Not only did Felicia receive her undergrad after transferring to the University of Northern Colorado, she tackled her graduate degree and received a Master’s of Science in Clinician Psychology from the University of Phoenix. “The online program gave me flexibility. It allowed me to be a mom— a single mom with two boys and this health condition I was trying to overcome. During that entire time, I never missed a single baseball or soccer game. I even showed up to one game with special permission from my doctor who allowed my mother to take me in my wheelchair and on an IV drip, but I never missed one.”
Today, she reflects on her past as “a journey.” Felicia’s been in good health for nearly ten years and although she knows her autoimmune disease could flare up at any moment, she chooses to be present in each moment. Today that means connecting people with mental health services because she worries that people are “suffering in silence.”
Felicia wants people to think about their mental health like their physical health: “If you have a broken leg, you wouldn’t push off an appointment with your doctor just like I worked tirelessly to figure out what ailment put me in a wheelchair. If you need help with your mental health, don’t hesitate to reach out. We have capacity, we’re open, we’re safe, and if you are still uncomfortable coming in, we offer appointments over Zoom.”
Like the rest of the healthcare industry, COVID has impacted people coming in to receive mental health therapy and services. Mind Springs has reported a 50% reduction in outpatient mental health therapy being started year-over-year.
Felicia wants people to think about their mental health like their physical health: “If you have a broken leg, you wouldn’t push off an appointment with your doctor just like I worked tirelessly to figure out what ailment put me in a wheelchair. If you need help with your mental health, don’t hesitate to reach out. We have capacity, we’re open, we’re safe, and if you are still uncomfortable coming in, we offer appointments over Zoom.”
Felicia explains why she admires the organization she works for: “Mind Springs doesn’t let the grass grow under their feet and they innovate to make sure people have access to care.”
That seems like a fitting parallel to her own story, a story that inspires action and optimism in the midst of hardship with healing as the proverbial cherry on top.
If you are experiencing a mental health crisis you can call the Colorado Crisis Line at 844.493.8255 or text TALK to 38255. Please contact Mind Springs Health at 970.241.6023 if you would like to set up mental health counseling sessions either by person or virtually.