Ep.07 The Ripple Effect: with Ashley Mielke

 

In our 7th episode of The ONE Program Podcast, we welcome a very special guest to the show! Ashley Mielke is a Registered Psychologist, Advanced Certified Grief Recovery Specialist, and Founder and CEO of The Grief and Trauma Healing Centre Inc. in Alberta, Canada. She is also the exclusive Canadian Certification Trainer for The Grief Recovery Institute and a sought-after international speaker, trainer, and thought leader on grief. Ashley is also a business consultant for the Practice of the Practice, where she supports and empowers heart-centred therapists to start, grow, and scale their private practices. Ashley was honoured to be named as one of Edify’s Top 40 Under 40 Class of 2021.

Ashley has led workshops and training events for multi-million-dollar corporations, professional associations, non-profits, the City of Edmonton, the Government of Canada, Federal Penitentiaries, and numerous small businesses. Ashley is currently obtaining her Doctor of Psychology degree (PsyD) through California Southern University.

Ashley found her passion early in life following a difficult childhood overshadowed by her father’s substance abuse and eventual suicide. Surprisingly, Ashley came to discover that her darkest and most painful period of life, was in fact, the very catalyst that uncovered her “WHY” for being: to serve others and create a safe space to explore life’s most challenging questions. Ashley is a heart-centred and purpose-driven leader who instils hope and healing through her story of resilience. Ashley’s greatest empowerment comes when she is able to connect with others and help them find the resilience of hope that can empower them—the hope that can only be found in the midst of great challenges and journeys through grief.

In their conversation, Kristen and Ashley explore the importance of ripples in our lives. The ripples we create by following our purpose and living out our "why", by serving others, by being a leader who leads with their story, and by speaking up about the issues that matter the most to us. This intimate discussion is both uplifting and entirely relatable to anyone who's had a dream and known the ups and downs that come with that journey.

The loss of her father left Ashely with pain, shame, sadness, and a sense of isolation in her grief and even as a grad student studying to be a registered psychologist, Ashley felt that no one was truly equipped to help her move through her grief journey. After graduating she realized that many grieving people were referred to her and she was also feeling ill-equipped to support them in a way that truly made a difference. It was upon attending a 4-day Grief Recovery Method Program where she was able to process her own grief and then realize this incredible method for serving others like her, that she knew she'd found her purpose and promptly incorporated her business - The Grief and Trauma Healing Centre the very next day.

The success that Ashely has realized so far in her career is multifaceted and has created many ripples in different people's lives. She explains how important her team is to her and how integrating her vision, mission, and values has helped (among other things) to attract an ideal team who buy into the heart-centred approach that she lives by.

Ashley is currently running her Hope Campaign for the third year in a row - an initiative that was initially started to mark the 10 year anniversary of her father's passing and now continues on to raise awareness and funds to support different local charities. This year, the beneficiary of the Hope Campaign is Little Warriors - a national charitable organization based in Alberta, Canada that is focused on the awareness, prevention, and treatment of child sexual abuse.You can find Ashley on Instagram @theashleymielke and @griefandtraumahealingcentre and at www.healmyheart.ca