Meet Ms. Guity
I’m Nydia E. Guity. LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker) in the states of New York and Georgia. I am based in Atlanta, Georgia and work as a therapist in an outpatient behavioral health clinic.
I support black women in overcoming emotional barriers attached to obtaining outward beauty. By highlighting the essence of being natural as well as address psychosocial stressors that black women face in their natural hair journey. Through the use of a holistic lens, I help amazing women like you explore diet/ nutrition, personal style and self-care via online challenges, workshops, webinars and live events.
I have been natural since November 2007, since that time access to natural hair communities have drastically increased! There are platforms with a wealth of information on hair tutorials, products reviews and hair style techniques to name a few but none on how to overcome hair shame. When I decided to start embracing my natural hair, I was curious to know what I would look like without chemically straightening my hair. What I didn’t know at the time was the push back I would encounter from the people around me, some being my closest family/ friends. I was told things like, “Your hair is nappy and ugly like that” or “I liked your hair better when it was straight”. It stung and hurt that so many people opposed what grew naturally from my scalp.
Although I followed the instructions in the tutorial videos and used the right products, I still felt self-conscious about my natural hair. It took years to unlearn messages of Eurocentric beauty standards and truly embrace from within what it means to be a black woman with natural hair and FABULOUS! In August 2017 I attended the Black Therapists Rock conference and felt inspired to create something new and fresh that would help the natural hair community in a valuable way. Your Natural Hairapist (YNH) was created to support black women in blossoming to feel more confident about their natural hair from within, so they can dominate in all arenas of their lives.
As a result of all the experiences shared, I learned that YNH was more than just hair. Women shared their stories with colorism, infertility, ethnocentrism and dating to name a few as well as the emotional effect on how they viewed themselves in relation to what is highlighted in mainstream media. Ms. Guity, LCSW was created to expand on YNH and encompass social issues outside of natural hair that affect hair health.
My passion to support black women in building their confidence from within is imbedded in my own natural hair experience as well as being engulfed with questions on how to feel more confident. In my professional capacity as a therapist, psychosocial stressors rooted in physical health concerns, relational issues and trauma can manifest outwardly as hair loss. My training started at the University of Vermont (UVM) where I obtained a Bachelors of Social Work followed by a Masters in Clinical Social Work from Fordham University. I am a member of Black Therapist Rock (BTR) and invest a lot of time in my own self-care as well as managing a fulfilling career. Degrees are important however building emotional intelligence sets the foundation to build confidence that will unleash endless possibilities in any arena of your life!
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