Talk Therapy: Making Lifestyle Changes In Non-Traditional Work Environments with Laura Louise Green

Talk Therapy: Making Lifestyle Changes In Non-Traditional Work Environments with Laura Louise Green

Talk Therapy is a program where we invite licensed professionals to discuss matters that affect the Food and Beverage industry and society at large.

*This is not therapy.

Have a question that you’d like answered? Submit it here.

The event will be available for view LIVE on our Instagram @fohealth.

December 25th | 2 PM EST

Laura earned a master’s degree in Education from DePaul University in 2017, concentrating in Community and Clinical Mental Health Counseling. After 3 years of studying subjects including (but certainly not limited to) multiculturalism, feminist theory, sexuality, social psychology, group therapy, trauma, ethics, and career counseling, she completed a 700-hour clinical internship at the Community Counseling Centers of Chicago where she treated individuals of low socioeconomic status. Presenting issues were quite diverse, ranging from sexual abuse, substance use issues, and homelessness in adults, to academic and interpersonal issues in children—all while working full time behind bars.

In December 2016, her article Substance Abuse is a Community Issue was published on TalesoftheCocktail.com, which completely altered the trajectory of her career. While graduate school was initially a way out of bars, it became painfully clear that the industry was culturally and socially struggling--not only in its rocky relationship with mental health and substance use, but also sexism, racism, classism, and ageism from both sides of the bar. Having realized she possesses a profoundly unique and solution oriented perspective into these issues, Laura continues to integrate her clinical and academic experiences into her work in beverage by directing her research and professional focus towards spirits education, the mental health and wellness of food & beverage professionals, and the holistic health of the beverage industry. 

To date, Laura has presented about mental health in the drinks industry at Bar Convent Brooklyn (It’s Complicated: Rethinking our Relationship with Alcohol), Tales of the Cocktail (Burnout: How to Manage a Career on Fire; Mental Health: An In-depth Discussion; The Responsible Leader; Mental Health on the Rocks with a Twist, #SEDTALKS, Beyond the Bar), Western Food Service & Hospitality Expo (Let’s Talk about Mental Health + Wellness in Restaurants), and a series of independent events concerning the health and wellness of industry folk. Additionally, Laura was a 2018 Grant Recipient from the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation to fund research around stress, burnout, and substance use within the food an beverage industry, and she currently sits on the educational and seminar selection committee for Tales of the Cocktail's Beyond the Bar track. She is grateful for the opportunity to lead and foster conversations happening in the community around mental health, diversity, inclusion, and career longevity.

When not speaking about Mental Health, Laura works as the Regional Spirits Specialist for Winebow, representing a portfolio of small, intentional, and ethical distilleries. Laura’s role is rooted in advocacy and spirits education and believes appropriate, ethical, and responsible education in hospitality is foundational to creating environments that support employee wellbeing and conditions in which folx can thrive. Laura is a proud alumni of the BAR 5 Day program.