Sarah Watkins

I was born and raised in Fayetteville, Arkansas along with one sibling by two parents who were hippie ‘transplants’ from the north who fell in love with the Ozarks. My childhood has many fond memories of my dad listening and dancing to rock and reggae and my mom working in her organic garden. I went to public school until the 9th grade and then decided to home-school via the American School of Correspondence for high school. I started my nursing career at the age of 21 as a Licensed Practical Nurse and have mostly worked in the family practice outpatient setting. I went back to school and received my associate’s degree in registered nursing in 2016. Sadly, the same year, my younger sister Flora passed away at the age of 29 by suicide.  This tragic part of my life drastically changed the way I viewed mental health not only personally, but also professionally. I also am currently a senior at Arkansas Tech in their online RN-BSN program.

 I have been married to a true ‘southern’ boy, Aaron, for the past twelve years. He introduced me to country music, camo, Velveeta, four-wheeling, and cowgirl boots. Life is never boring with him around!  We have two ‘fur-babies’, Bella and Mollie, who are miniature schnauzers and who bring so much joy to our lives. In my early 20s, I was very active in ministry work with the Marshallese community in NWA for a handful of years and still enjoy speaking the language (somewhat brokenly) when I get the chance. I enjoy watching movies, listening to audiobooks, and taking hikes in my spare time.

I work as a Clinic Care Coordinator at a large family practice. Part of my job is looking for ways to integrate behavioral health into the practice. This includes depression screenings, self-management tools, addressing social needs, and staff education.  In 2017 I started a care management program that offers free education sessions not only for chronic disease management (e.g. diabetes) but also on depression and anxiety self-management.