Ashley and Emily are joined (again!) by Shikha Patel, MSW, LCSW, and Anna Marchese, MSW, MCSW, from Collaborative Insights. At the top of the episode, Shikha discusses cultural trauma at length - what it is as a collective trauma, how you can identify it in your life, and how to navigate how that trauma has affected your life and healing journey. We discuss how cultural trauma varies from other types of trauma, how it is passed down generationally, and how it affects norms, traditions, values, holidays, and more. Shikha discusses how culturagrams are great tools to use as an assessment to identify foundational parts of cultural identity.

We then head into a discussion led by Anna, who grew up as a pastor’s kid and has a particular interest in religious trauma as a licensed therapist, reiki healer, and yoga instructor. Religious trauma is something that many people experience, and often reflect on in adulthood as they may want to continue spiritual practices in their current lives but are hesitant due to religious trauma in their past. Religious Trauma is a clinical term given by Dr. Marlene Winell to the condition experienced by many who leave an authoritarian indoctrination, where symptoms can be cognitive, emotional, social, and cultural.

These are layered topics with a lot of nuance as everyone’s experience is unique and valid.

Website: https://collabintherapy.com/

IG: collabintherapy

Books Mentioned:

Permission To Come Home by Jenny Wang

https://www.jennywangphd.com/new-page

Educated by Tara Westover

https://tarawestover.com/book