Intergenerational Trauma

Intergenerational trauma is the emotional impact of trauma through generations.

How Does It Affect Me?

Even if you haven’t directly experienced the war, genocide, slavery, forced migration, or colonization that your ancestors did, you may still be living with that trauma. Especially if we come from marginalized communities with a cultural history of trauma, it’s important for us to understand what burdens we carry that didn’t start with us. But the tricky thing about intergenerational trauma is that they are not immediately obvious. Unless we are actively curious about it, we may not fully understand that something that has plagued us for most of our lives actually has nothing to do with us.

Recognizing what isn’t ours to carry is the first step toward healing.

Signs & Symptoms

Intergenerational trauma can manifest in all areas of our lives:

Mental

  • Scarcity mindset

  • Rage

  • Low self-esteem

  • Depression

  • Anxiety

Physical

  • Heart disease

  • Chronic Pain

  • Substance Abuse

  • Burnout

  • Destructive Behavior

Personal

  • Self-Policing

  • Internalized Shame

  • Parentified Children

  • Attachment Issues

  • Relationship Issues

Social

  • Judgement of Others

  • Cultural Expectation

  • Perpetuating Stigmas

  • Micro-aggressions

  • Oppression

Intergenerational Blessings

If it’s possible to inherit traumas from our ancestors, it is also possible for us to inherit the wisdom and strengths of our ancestors.

Therapy can help you begin to connect with your internal light and ancestral blessings.

Breaking the Cycle

If you think you are part of a generational cycle that you didn’t create, and don’t want to perpetuate for yourself or future generations, therapy is a great place to start.

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“A gleam in the veins, that radiant flow, which comes from seeing the passing of wisdom between generations.”

Chang-Rae Lee