From Mental Health Struggles to Empowerment: How to Rewire Your Brain for Success with Trina Parnell

Mental health challenges can feel like insurmountable obstacles, leaving us feeling isolated even when surrounded by loved ones. But what if the power to transform your mindset and overcome these struggles lies within you? In this powerful interview with mindset coach Trina Parnell, we explore how understanding your brain, identifying limiting beliefs, and implementing strategic practices can help you break free from mental health struggles and create lasting transformation.

Trina's Journey: From Personal Struggle to Mindset Mastery

Trina Parnell's path to becoming a mindset and strategy coach began with her own mental health challenges. Starting around age 12-13, her struggles intensified in her late 20s and early 30s, reaching a critical point that demanded action.

"I had been struggling with mental health since I was like 12 or 13, and it got to a point where it was a really big struggle in my life in my late 20s and early 30s," Trina shares.

When faced with the option of medication, Trina was hesitant. Though she briefly tried anti-anxiety medication for severe panic attacks, the experience left her searching for alternative solutions. This pivotal moment became the catalyst for her transformation.

"I remember waking up terrified about what these pills meant for me, so I threw them out. I was just like, 'There has to be another way.'"

This decision launched her into extensive research on the mind, human behavior, and success patterns. She discovered something profound: "We all really have more power over our entire lives than we give ourselves credit for, than we think we do."

Trina's personal breakthrough came in 2019 during what she describes as a line-in-the-sand moment. Walking down a street on an ordinary spring day, she made a declaration to herself: "2019 is going to be my year." This simple yet powerful decision marked the beginning of her emergence from the mental health challenges that had defined much of her life.

"There was nothing special about this day... I just remember this voice in my head being like, 'This is my year.' And literally in that year, I started to pick myself out of this hole that I felt like I had dug myself in."

Understanding the Mind: How We Create Our Reality

At the core of Trina's approach is understanding how our thoughts shape our reality—especially the damaging belief that "I'm not enough."

"The biggest thing for me, and it's a common emotion or thought in everybody, is 'Am I enough?' or 'I'm not enough.' We get so hard on ourselves," Trina explains. "For the better part of growing up, I thought I was broken. I didn't know what to do about it."

This sense of being broken led to profound loneliness, even when surrounded by loved ones—a particularly painful contradiction that many people experience but struggle to understand.

"I felt alone and isolated...you don't really understand how you can feel alone when you have all these bodies around you. Then it's easy to say, 'Well, there's something wrong with me.'"

Trina explains the neuroscience behind these persistent negative thought patterns:

1. Emotional experiences create memories - "Anytime you have a significant emotional experience, whether exciting or traumatic, your body remembers it."
2. The brain processes information through shortcuts - "We quickly generalize, distort, or delete information in order to make sense of it."
3. Without proper processing, we create false narratives - "We can easily label it as, 'This happened because I'm unlovable,' or 'This happened because nobody loves me.'"

These narratives aren't facts—they're stories we've created based on our interpretation of events. Recognizing this distinction is the first step toward changing these patterns.

Practical Strategies for Mental Transformation

The Power of Journaling

One of the most effective tools for mental transformation is also one of the simplest: journaling. Trina emphasizes that writing down thoughts provides a critical perspective shift.

"When we write down our thoughts, you are able to go back and look at them from a third-person perspective," she explains. "A lot of the time when we are stuck in those emotional holes, it's because we are in a first-person position where we're deep in them."

This shift from first-person to third-person perspective allows you to:

• Express how you feel (even if it's not how you want to feel)
• Process emotions that might otherwise remain trapped
• Create distance between yourself and your thoughts
• Recognize patterns in your thinking

For those who struggle with journaling due to shame, Trina acknowledges this common obstacle: "If shame is something people struggle with, writing down your thoughts and feelings is going to be more difficult... because you've created a story that those thoughts and feelings are wrong."

The solution is approaching journaling with self-compassion: "The thoughts and feelings that we have are part of our experience, and the only way we can rewire our brain is if we bring awareness to what is actually going on within us without judgment."

Environment: The Silent Influencer

Our environment—the people, places, and energy surrounding us—profoundly impacts our mental state.

"Check your environment... we're all walking around with energy," Trina advises. "For people who are empathetic, they can easily adopt that energy, whether it's sadness or aggressive behavior."

Trina's own life changed dramatically when she removed herself from Toronto's fast-paced, impatient atmosphere—an environment that was exacerbating her mental health challenges.

"My life really started to change dramatically when I took myself out of the city and I was able to breathe."

While she doesn't advocate cutting everyone off, she suggests evaluating your social circle through these questions:

• What life do I want?
• Who do I want to be?
• What kind of people embody the qualities I want to develop?
• Whose energy would support my growth?

Creating a Clear Vision

Vague aspirations like "I want my life to be better" lack the specificity needed for meaningful change. Trina advocates creating a detailed vision across multiple life categories:

"Once you can start to create this vision... the more clear you become on it and the more committed you become to it, the easier it's going to be to realize what environments are going to help that and what aren't."

This clarity helps you make better decisions about what to accept and what to reject in your life. It requires learning an essential skill many people struggle with: saying no.

"I had this weird story that 'no' equals rejection... I would do anything in my power to avoid the word 'no,'" Trina confesses. "It's a skill you need to practice, and it's really hard if you're not good at it, but you can do it."

The Identity-Based Approach to Achievement

Trina's favorite piece of advice, inspired by Tony Robbins, shifts the focus from external goals to internal transformation:

"Do not make it about the goal—make it about who you need to become to achieve the goal."

This identity-based approach transforms how we pursue our aspirations:

"A lot of the time we get caught up in this goal or idea of a thing that we want, and we can lose ourselves in that," Trina explains. When we focus on becoming the person who can achieve the goal, we:

1. Focus on what we can control (our own development)
2. Avoid sacrificing our values for external achievements
3. Create sustainable change that persists beyond specific goals
4. Develop an identity aligned with our deepest values

"Who you believe that you are, what you believe that you are, is going to shape your life far more than any belief that's outside of yourself," Trina emphasizes.

Embracing the Journey: From Darkness to Possibility

For those currently struggling with mental health challenges, Trina offers a powerful message of hope:

"Every part of your journey is your own, and we all have seasons. You might be in a season right now where you feel like it is dark and cold, and you don't see a light. I just want anybody listening who feels like they're in that moment of their life to know that seasons end, and you just have to keep pulling through."

The path forward begins with small steps and modest expectations:

"Even if it's like, 'Tomorrow is going to be better than today,' and if you keep doing that every day, you'll start to see that light."

Once you start achieving even small personal development goals, your perception of what's possible expands. This creates a positive spiral:

"When you can start to break free of the world's expectations of you and watch yourself achieve small goals, they can become bigger. And as they become bigger, the world of possibility opens up for you."

Trina's ultimate message emphasizes personal empowerment: "You are in control of your life. You're in control of your destiny. And all of it starts with really believing in yourself, believing in something bigger than yourself, and deciding that you're worth it to go after."

Conclusion: Your Mind, Your Power

Mental health transformation isn't about quick fixes or external solutions—it's about recognizing the power that already exists within you. By understanding how your brain works, writing down your thoughts, curating your environment, creating specific visions, and focusing on who you need to become, you can break free from limiting beliefs and mental health struggles.

As Trina's journey demonstrates, the path from darkness to light is possible. It begins with the recognition that you have more power over your life than you realize, continues with consistent small steps forward, and eventually leads to a transformed mindset where new possibilities emerge.

The journey might not be linear, and as Nathan notes, it requires dealing with "demons from the past" rather than simply trying to move forward without addressing them. But with the right tools and perspective, lasting transformation is within reach.