Meet Sislena Grocer Ledbetter, PhD. “Dr. Sis”

If you have ever struggled to say what is really in your heart, felt misunderstood by someone you love, or wondered how to create a deeper, more honest kind of connection, I created this work with you in mind.

I’m Dr. Sis, author of The 7 Conversations You Must Have Before You Say “I Do” and founder of The Conversation Project . At the heart of my work is a simple belief: the quality of our relationships is deeply connected to the quality of our conversations.

I help people have the conversations that matter, with greater clarity, courage, compassion, and confidence. My approach brings together psychology, soulful self-awareness, practical tools, and a whole lot of real life. Together, we explore the conversations that build trust, deepen intimacy, reveal what has been left unsaid, and help prevent small misunderstandings from becoming emotional distance.

I have spent much of my career studying people, relationships, wellbeing, and the ways we connect. My education has taken me through North Carolina Central University, Howard University, Georgetown University, and Harvard. My career has taken me through higher education, public service, mental health, leadership, teaching, and media, including more than nine years hosting A Healthy Mind.

But this work is personal, too.

The Seven Conversations did not come only from what I studied. It was shaped by what I lived.

I know what it means to look back at a relationship and recognize the conversations you had, the ones you avoided, and the ones you did not even know you needed to have. That experience helped me understand something I now teach with conviction: love matters, but love alone does not create a healthy relationship. We also need honesty, emotional safety, self-awareness, shared expectations, and the courage to talk about the things that are hardest to say.

That is what I want to help you do.

I want to help you move from silence to honest dialogue, from surface conversations to deeper connection, and from confusion to clarity. Whether you are dating, preparing for marriage, already partnered, or simply trying to understand yourself better in relationships, my hope is that these conversations help you love more intentionally.

And while I take this work seriously, I don’t believe everything meaningful has to feel heavy. I believe in laughter, joy, handwritten notes, good questions, brave conversations, and paying attention to the small sacred moments that make a life together.

If you are ready for more truth, more peace, more clarity, and a deeper kind of connection, you are in the right place.

One of the most impactful decisions you make in your life is who you choose as a life partner. Take time to invest in that decision.

“The most romantic thing you can do is tell the truth before you make promises you might not be able to keep.”