Today we’d like to introduce you to Sharise.
Hi Sharise, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’m a Pittsburgh native, licensed clinical social worker, speaker, entrepreneur, author, and founder of Vitamin C Healing, LLC and the SWAG Alliance Foundation. But my journey didn’t start with entrepreneurship—it started with a desire to help people heal.
Early in my career, I worked in a variety of mental health and social service settings, supporting individuals and families navigating trauma, grief, crisis, and life transitions. Those experiences taught me not only about resilience, but also about the emotional toll helping professionals often carry while caring for others.
In 2013, I co-founded a counseling practice focused on increasing access to quality mental health services, particularly in underserved communities. Over the years, the practice grew, and I gained invaluable experience as a clinician, supervisor, leader, and business owner.
In 2017, I made the decision to leave full-time employment and pursue entrepreneurship full-time. That leap came with uncertainty, challenges, and more than a few lessons in courage. Along the way, I built a national speaking and consulting practice focused on burnout prevention, compassion fatigue, trauma-informed workplaces, sustainable leadership, and organizational wellness.
More recently, I experienced another significant professional transition. After helping build a counseling practice for more than a decade, I made the decision to step away and focus fully on the next chapter of my work. While it wasn’t an easy decision, it created the opportunity to dedicate more time and energy to speaking, training, consulting, and supporting organizations in creating healthier workplace cultures.
Today, through Vitamin C Healing, I work with organizations across the country to help leaders and teams prevent burnout, retain talent, and build emotionally sustainable workplaces. Through the SWAG (Social Worker Appreciation of Greatness )Alliance Foundation, I support social workers through professional development, licensure assistance, wellness initiatives, and recognition programs that celebrate the impact of the profession.
Along the way, I’ve authored multiple books, spoken to audiences ranging from small teams to hundreds of professionals, and been honored for my work in mental health, leadership, and entrepreneurship. But what I’m most proud of is helping people realize they don’t have to sacrifice their well-being to make a difference.
My journey continues to be rooted in the same belief that guided me from the beginning: when we care for the people who care for others, everyone benefits.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not at all. Like most entrepreneurs, my journey has included plenty of challenges, pivots, setbacks, and lessons learned along the way.
One of the biggest challenges was learning how to build a business while also being a helping professional. Social workers are trained to serve others, but many of us are never taught how to market, sell, negotiate contracts, manage finances, or lead organizations. I had to learn those skills through experience, mistakes, mentorship, and a lot of persistence.
Another challenge has been overcoming self-doubt. Early in my career, I often questioned whether I was ready for certain opportunities or whether my voice belonged in certain rooms. Over time, I learned that confidence isn’t something you wait to feel before taking action. It grows through taking action.
Like many business owners, I’ve also navigated economic uncertainty, changing markets, and the realities of entrepreneurship. There have been seasons where opportunities were abundant and seasons that required me to rethink, adapt, and make difficult decisions.
Beyond the professional challenges, I’ve also experienced significant personal loss. Navigating the loss of loved ones while continuing to lead, build organizations, and support others taught me lessons about resilience that no degree or certification could provide. Those experiences deepened my understanding of grief, change, and healing, and continue to influence both my personal life and professional work.
Most recently, one of the more significant challenges was making the decision to step away from a counseling practice I helped build over more than a decade. Letting go of something you’ve invested years of your life into is never easy. At the same time, it created space for growth and allowed me to focus more fully on speaking, consulting, leadership development, and organizational wellness.
If there’s one lesson I’ve learned, it’s that success is rarely a straight line. The setbacks, transitions, losses, and unexpected turns often become the experiences that prepare you for the next chapter. Looking back, many of the moments that felt most difficult at the time ultimately helped shape the person, leader, and entrepreneur I am today.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Vitamin C Healing & SWAG Alliance Foundation ?
Today, my work centers around two organizations: Vitamin C Healing, LLC and the SWAG Alliance Foundation.
Through Vitamin C Healing, I help organizations create healthier, more sustainable workplace cultures. As a licensed clinical social worker, speaker, and trauma specialist, I provide keynotes, workshops, consulting, and leadership development focused on burnout prevention, compassion fatigue, workplace well-being, trauma-informed practices, and organizational resilience. Much of my work is centered on helping the people who spend their careers helping others.
The SWAG Alliance Foundation was created to support social workers through professional development, licensure assistance, wellness initiatives, continuing education, and recognition. One of our signature programs is the SWAG Awards, an annual event that celebrates the impact social workers have throughout our communities and shines a light on work that often goes unnoticed.
What sets my work apart is that it is grounded in both professional expertise and lived experience. After more than two decades in the mental health field, I understand the realities of burnout, leadership stress, grief, change, and the emotional demands many professionals carry every day. I don’t just teach these topics—I have lived many of them.
What I’m most proud of is creating spaces where people feel seen, supported, and valued. Whether it’s helping an organization better support its workforce, providing reflective supervision to helping professionals, sponsoring a social worker’s licensure exam, or recognizing someone for their contributions to the field, the goal is the same: helping people continue doing meaningful work without losing themselves in the process.
If there’s one thing I want readers to know, it’s that making a difference shouldn’t require destroying yourself in the process. Too many caring, capable people are running on empty while carrying the weight of everyone else. My work is about helping people and organizations create a more sustainable way forward.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
Over the next 5–10 years, I believe we’ll see a significant shift from focusing solely on individual self-care to addressing the organizational factors that contribute to burnout, turnover, and workforce fatigue.
For years, many helping professionals were told to be more resilient, set better boundaries, or practice more self-care. While those strategies have value, organizations are increasingly recognizing that burnout is not just an individual issue—it’s often a workplace issue.
I believe we’ll see greater investment in psychologically healthy workplaces, leadership development, reflective supervision, trauma-informed organizational practices, and employee well-being strategies that go beyond wellness initiatives and address workplace culture itself.
In mental health and social work specifically, I expect continued workforce shortages, growing demand for services, and an increased focus on retention.
Organizations that prioritize the well-being of their staff will be better positioned to attract and keep talented professionals.
I’m also hopeful that conversations around grief, workplace loss, compassion fatigue, secondary trauma, and emotional sustainability will become more mainstream. The future belongs to organizations that understand that healthy people build healthy organizations, and that caring for those who care for others is not a luxury—it’s a necessity.
Pricing:
- Keynotes and conference presentations on burnout prevention, compassion fatigue, leadership wellness, and trauma-informed workplaces
- Organizational workshops and professional development training available nationwide
- Reflective supervision and leadership consultation available virtually
- Customized wellness and workforce retention strategies for organizations and helping professionals
- Speaking, consulting, and training engagements tailored to organizational needs
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.sharisenance.com
- Instagram: Https://Www.instagram.com/sharisenance
- Facebook: Https://www.facebook.com/sharisenance
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharise-nance-lcsw-compassion-fatigue-consultant
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@sharisenance
