S3E14: Building Bridges Featuring Kheira Bekkadja

Couched in Color

In this episode, guest Kheira Bekkadja, a Muslim Algerian American college student making an impact in mental health, inspires listeners with her insights on grounding in self-care and positive affirmations.

As an example, she shares the Muslim practice of praying five times, at set times during the day, as challenging as it can be to stay persistent. There are movements that go with the prayer, including putting the forehead on the floor, which helps release negative energy and connect with God. “My faith is what rejuvenates me,” Kheira says.

Surrounding oneself with good people is another way she recommends staying grounded.

Topics covered in this interview:

• Kheira juggles being a college student, majoring in civil engineering, and doing mental health advocacy work. The importance of finding ways to “fill your cup” as it’s very easy to get burned out and saturated working in mental health.
• The ways she builds bridges structurally (through civil engineering) and by de-stigmatizing mental health.
• Kheira’s selection for, and later participation in, the MTV Youth Action Forum sponsored by the Biden-Harris administration. The goal of the Forum is to “share and tell everyone healing is within you.”
• She continues working on creating culturally relevant campaigns for MTV.
• She and Dr. Alfiee both share poignant moments of what it was like to be at the White House that day, when the Forum came together, and meeting the president and his wife, and being in the nation’s capital.
• Kheira’s desire to be a role model, especially after not seeing herself fully reflected back with other Muslim Algerian Americans in the audience- as beautifully diverse and culturally rich as it was.
• She shares many inspiring quotes of self-talk and how she empowers herself, and listens to others with empathy versus judgment.

About Kheira Bekkadja:

Kheira Bekkadja is a second-year student at George Mason University, working to build bridges [literally] by studying civil & infrastructure engineering and [figuratively] de-stigmatizing mental health and youth empowerment.

Through her experiences as being a Muslim Algerian American Woman, Kheira worked alongside Our Minds Matter (OMM) which has enabled her with the courage to openly speak up about her challenges in hopes of inspiring others to be the healthiest versions of themselves. She has also had the chance to share her story at Harvard University’s National Muslim Women’s Summit 2020, The Global Health Leaders Conference at Johns Hopkins University, and advocate with VOICE-IAF, This is My Brave, and Promote Care Prevent Harm. This past May, Kheira had the incredible and life-changing opportunity to be selected as one of the mental health youth action forum participants where she and the #HiddenHealers team are working to cultivate creative mental health campaigns to help inspire culturally-relevant healing and action. Kheira finds great joy in making others smile and helping them to believe in their best selves!

Follow Kheira:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kheirabekkadja/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kheirabekkadja/

Follow Dr. Alfiee:

Website: https://dralfiee.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dralfiee

Twitter: https://twitter.com/dralfiee

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dralfiee/

Website: https://dralfiee.com

Find out more about the AAKOMA Project here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvTKmYKi24I

Season 3 Produced By: https://socialchameleon.us

More Couched in Color: https://dralfiee.com/podcast

Music Produced by: Mark “King” Batson (Superproducer of your favorite artists and Grammy award-winner for albums with Eminem and Beyoncé)