Joshua Dixon is a certified mental health life coach, motivational speaker, and multidisciplinary creator based in Chicago. He is the founder of Admire Wear, Rise & Admire, and Admire Talks—a live storytelling experience created to help people reclaim their lives after trauma, rediscover their worth, and feel seen again.
At the heart of Joshua’s work is a sentence that changed everything:
“I admire you.”
Three simple words that took a lifetime to speak—and believe.
Joshua’s purpose found him early in life. When he was 8 years old, he was attacked by his family dogs after coming home from school. He slipped on ice in the yard, and in that moment, one dog attacked his face, attempting to drag him into the garage to kill him. The other dog pulled him toward the house in an attempt to save his life. What followed was a tug-of-war with his face.
Joshua lost both ears, his left eyelid, cheeks, nose, muscles, and veins. What he didn’t know then was that this moment—unimaginable pain and survival—was the moment his purpose was placed into his hands.
The road that followed was relentless.
Joshua fought for his life repeatedly, enduring over 60 facial reconstruction surgeries, feeding tubes, comas, thousands of stitches, and permanent internal hardware in his face. He was bullied relentlessly. The emotional damage rippled through his family and manifested in mental abuse, physical abuse, and substance abuse. He had to relearn how to walk, how to chew, and ultimately how to live.
Hospitals became home. Doctors and nurses became family. Through art therapy, Joshua learned how to express pain that words couldn’t hold. He grew. He learned to drive. He graduated from college. He experienced love—and also learned firsthand what it meant to survive domestic violence, becoming yet another kind of survivor.
Joshua has endured layers of trauma:
dog mauling, sexual assault, rape, bullying, domestic violence, racial profiling, assault, discrimination based on ability, child abuse, depression, anxiety, and a suicide attempt.
Yet through faith, perseverance, and continuous healing, he continues to fight for tomorrow.
In December 2020, after surviving a suicide attempt, Joshua’s life was spared once again. During recovery, his counselor introduced him to the power of affirmations. One night, after an emotionally exhausting day, Joshua looked in the mirror through tears and said:
“I admire you for not giving up. We got this.”
That moment became the foundation of everything.
“I Admire You”—later becoming Admire Wear—was born not as a brand, but as a lifeline. Though his initial pitch to Adobe Creative Residency didn’t move forward, Joshua remained determined to build something that could help others survive what he had lived.
Admire Wear officially launched on September 5, 2021, during Suicide Prevention Month, with a singular mission:
to help people admire themselves, even when life has tried to convince them not to.
Today, Joshua serves a global audience of over 500,000 followers and has reached over 100 million lifetime views across platforms. His transparency, vulnerability, and creative storytelling have built a community grounded in compassion, resilience, and hope.
As a certified mental health life coach, Joshua offers breakthrough coaching sessions for individuals navigating trauma, emotional burnout, identity loss, and disconnection from self. His work focuses on self-worth, emotional safety, clarity, and rebuilding life after trauma.
Through Admire Talks, Joshua brings his message to the stage—creating spaces where people feel seen, where stories are honored, and where healing begins through shared humanity.
At his core, Joshua’s mission is simple and unwavering:
He never wants anyone to feel as alone as he once did.
He wants to be living proof that no matter how low life takes you, there is still purpose for your presence here.
All life is sacred. Your story matters. Healing is possible.
And above all:
You are admirable—exactly as you are, right now.
