Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges: My Gill Internship at Lepage Associates - D'Shawn Thomas

Hello, my name is D’Shawn Thomas, and I am a senior at UNC–Chapel Hill, majoring in Psychology (B.S.) with a minor in Chemistry. My passion for psychiatry began during my senior year of high school, a period when I first started to see how mental health intersects with culture, community, and identity.

Growing up, I saw someone close to me in my immediate family struggle with addiction, and I witnessed the emotional weight that untreated mental health challenges can place on individuals and families. As a Black man, I’ve also seen how stigma and cultural expectations can discourage Black men from seeking help. Too often, the message is clear: “stay strong, don’t talk about it.” But silence doesn’t heal — it isolates. These experiences shaped my desire to pursue psychiatry and work toward creating spaces where seeking support is recognized as a strength, and where culturally competent care is both accessible and transformative.

Through my Gill Internship at Lepage Associates Psychological and Psychiatric Services, I have been able to turn this personal passion into hands-on learning. Lepage is a practice where clinical care, psychological testing, and research meet to serve a wide range of mental health needs. My time here has given me an intimate look at how clinicians combine empathy with evidence-based practice to help clients navigate some of life’s most difficult challenges.

One of my most impactful projects involved creating a comprehensive manuscript and presentation on the psychology of anger and hate, particularly examining how these emotions appear in family law and how legal professionals navigate high-conflict situations. This project deepened my understanding of how psychological insight can guide decision-making and de-escalate tense environments.

I have also engaged in sensitive case study analyses, including cases involving intrafamilial sexual abuse. Working through this required great care, attention, and emotional awareness, reminding me of the responsibility mental health professionals hold when supporting individuals who have experienced trauma.

Outside of these projects, my day-to-day work at Lepage has been equally transformative. I attend weekly group therapy sessions, where I observe how clinicians foster healing through connection, trust, and shared vulnerability. A key part of my learning has also been spent analyzing psychological assessments, including the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V) — a widely used cognitive assessment. I’ve explored how this test is structured, conducted, and interpreted, and how its results inform both diagnostic clarity and individualized treatment planning. This hands-on exposure has allowed me to ask meaningful questions about testing procedures and better understand how clinical reasoning, technical precision, and compassionate care intersect in real-world settings.

This internship has been more than just professional development; it has been a confirmation of my calling. It has reinforced my commitment to pursuing psychiatry not only as a career but as a way to dismantle stigma and bridge gaps in access to care, especially for communities that have long been underserved.

I am deeply grateful to Dr. Steven Buzinski, Emily Dolegowski, and Richie Gray for making this opportunity possible. Their support and dedication to the Gill Internship Program allowed me to grow both personally and professionally. I am also sincerely thankful to Dr. Tine Lepage, Dr. Nicole Bassil, and the entire Lepage Associates team for their mentorship, trust, and willingness to let me learn through meaningful, hands-on experiences.

This internship has solidified my vision: to help build a future where Black men feel empowered to seek help, where cultural understanding is embedded in care, and where mental health support is accessible to everyone.