At sixteen years old, Jacqui Filbeck became a mother. Long before she became a therapist, an advocate, or a leader, she became a young woman determined to outrun every expectation the world had placed on her.
In Teen Mom to Therapist: Chasing Legitimacy, Jacqui shares the deeply personal journey of growing up while raising children, navigating racism, misogynoir, military service, trauma, emotional abuse, and the invisible weight of constantly feeling the need to prove she belonged. While her family surrounded her with unconditional love, society told a different story—one that insisted her future had already been written.
Determined to prove those narratives wrong, Jacqui pursued excellence at every turn. She earned degrees, served her country in the United States Air Force, built a career as a clinical social worker, and devoted herself to helping others heal. Yet beneath every accomplishment was a question she could never seem to escape:
When will I finally be enough?
With the insight of a therapist and the vulnerability of a woman who has done the work of healing, Jacqui examines how shame, perfectionism, and survival quietly shaped her identity for decades. She explores the impact of teen motherhood, family, systemic bias, military trauma, relationships, and the lifelong pursuit of external validation, ultimately discovering that legitimacy was never something she had to earn.
Honest, thought-provoking, and deeply inspiring, Teen Mom to Therapist: Chasing Legitimacy is more than a memoir. It is an invitation to challenge the stories that have defined you, release the burdens you were never meant to carry, and embrace the truth that your worth has never depended on anyone else’s approval.
For every woman who has ever felt she had something to prove, this book offers a different path—one that leads not to perfection, but to freedom.
The Running Social Worker: Chasing Happiness is a powerful memoir of resilience, identity, and self-discovery that challenges what it truly means to succeed.
As a teen mother, Jacqui Filbeck learned early that she would have to work harder to overcome assumptions about her future. Through determination, education, and perseverance, she built a successful career as a clinical social worker, believing that each degree, promotion, and professional achievement would finally provide the legitimacy she had spent her life pursuing.
Instead, she found herself navigating workplaces marked by bias, microaggressions, and systems that often silenced the very voices they claimed to value. While advocating tirelessly for others, she quietly wrestled with self-doubt, the pressure to prove herself, and a fear of the visibility that accompanies success.
Seeking relief from the emotional weight of the profession, Jacqui began taking walks that gradually evolved into distance running and eventually half marathons across the country. Running became more than exercise; it became a sanctuary, a coping strategy, and ultimately a mirror that revealed a deeper truth. She wasn’t running toward success. She was running from the vulnerability of using her voice, embracing her worth, and believing she already belonged.
With honesty, wisdom, and the unique perspective of a seasoned clinician, The Running Social Worker explores the emotional cost of constantly striving for external validation while inviting readers to reconsider the beliefs that have shaped their own lives. Jacqui’s journey reveals that true freedom is not found through achievement alone but through self-acceptance, authenticity, and the courage to stop seeking permission to be who you were created to be.
This inspiring memoir will resonate with professionals, leaders, caregivers, and anyone who has ever questioned whether they were enough. It is a story of finding your voice, reclaiming your identity, and discovering that the peace you’ve been chasing has been within you all along.