Nyjeuria Jones

Dr. Mance

PSYC-012-02

2/16/2024

Journal 4: Historical trauma, Black Psychology, and Healing

I definitely was very fond of the guest speakers that we had this past week. It was very

informative and more insightful pertaining to just the Black culture and how history and

psychology differ in a sense that western psychology does not provide the same standpoint

mentally, spiritually, physically, etc. My favorite discussion had to be the one with Ms.

Ferdinand. As stated in ym discussion. I knew who she was because she was my TA for

abnormal psychology. She spoke on what she did and was doing but it was nice to actually go

through her work and see the process of dealing with a patient as well as what it looks like from

her perspective. The treatment approaches in my opinion were very thorough and well thought

out as they catered to each different issue she was trying to address with the patient, Zara. It

appeared to me still very professional but very emotionally driven because of the context of the

situation which I also appreciated. Ms. Ferdinand genuinely wanted to help and find solutions in

which she did. Throughout the presentation you could get the idea that Zara and the family began

to trust the process more and more as time went on. It is very important to establish that

connection with your patients and it was very intentional to get Zara to a point of growth by

establishing the treatments and activities that she did. I also thought it was very cool to hear Ms.

Ferdinand talked about how the PTSD and Trichotillomania were comorbid. As someone who

has had issues with nail biting and unconsciously pulling out my eyebrow hairs, a lot of things

started to make sense because when you get anxious, you do things to comfort yourself.
 Concerning Dr. Wilsons lecture, it was very interesting to say the least. I believe the

activity he started with really set the tone for how the rest of the lecture was going to. You can

tell he is passionate about his work and his beliefs which I admire. Referring to the historical

trauma, there is no doubt that trauma is passed down from generation to generation. You can see

it in the way people raise their children. I do believe that it does affect the mental health of

families for the best or worst depending on how generations deal with that trauma. I think a lot of

the time, especially dealing with generations before me, the older generations are stuck in there

ways and it trickles down. Going back to when we started talking about our roles in the family

and how the eldest child becomes the alternative parent, it was very interesting to hear Dr.

Wilson's perspective on it vs the student who has been in that role. In black households there is

this narrative that the older child must help support the younger siblings. I've seen it not only in

my family but friends as well. I do agree with the student that black parents parentify their

children resulting in them growing up too early and not being able to just be a child. Dr. Wilson

kept bringing up the fact that because you're not the sole provider that doesn't make you a parent

and I have to disagree with that. No child should be put in a position where they prematurely are

stressed about adult things that should be handled by adults. Relating it back to historical

trauma, that narrative only continues because it's been engraved that if I had to do it, you do too.

Which causes more emotional and mental distress in the family.