By Dr. George James (Twitter I Instagram)
The feeling in the pit of your stomach before you have “The Talk” (how to act in racially charged situations so your child can come home safely); The anger you feel when your child shares a racist social media post from one of her/his classmates; The anxiety you feel around your colleagues after the murder of another Black person; The confusion and overwhelming feeling you have when your normally mature child starts regressing to childlike behavior due to a racial incident at school; These are just a few of the stories I’ve heard from my clients as they share their experiences of racialized trauma.
What you feel is valid. The pain, hurt and trauma you feel daily due to racial injustice is valid. Moreover, the changes and reactions you see in your children might not be attributed to a character deficit, attitude or chemical imbalance, but it could be due to racial trauma.
What is Racial Trauma?
Racial Trauma represents the emotional and physical symptoms often experienced by Black families and people of color due to the everyday occurrences of microaggressions and racism. It includes intergenerational injuries resulting from personal and collective experiences of racism. The public murders of George Floyd & Breonna Taylor among the numerous others, add to the multiple assaults that families experience daily due to racial injustice and can cause an increase in traumatic symptoms. Both adults and children can experience racial trauma. Some of the symptoms can include hypervigilance (anxious and on high alert), body aches, shame, fear, insomnia (lack of sleep), fear, guilt, headaches, confusion, numbness, and anger among others. Knowing these signs can help you recognize and cope with what you and your family may be experiencing.
Five Ways to Acknowledge Racial Trauma
1) Increased Anxiety – Worry and anxiety can be a normal part of life, but after traumatic experiences anxiety can increase significantly. Being afraid to go out, increased worry about interacting with the police, walking in your neighborhood or other fears may reflect the trauma you’ve experienced. Try to relax and take some deep breaths, it can make a huge difference. Then find someone, such as a therapist, to talk to help you with your anxiety.
2) Being Silent — Feeling numb and not wanting to speak can be another sign. Many Black families don’t want to talk about racism or are tired about talking about racism because it triggers the pain and hurt of the trauma, some of which they have felt a majority of their lives. It's okay to unplug and take care of yourself!
3) Lack of Sleep/Insomnia — Trouble going to sleep or going back to sleep, increased nightmares or a more frequent desire to sleep in bed with parents can reflect underlying anxiety, concerns and fears. Difficulties sleeping often signify emotional distress. Sharing messages of love and safety with children and finding safe healthy coping strategies among adults are important!
4) Intense Anger & Rage — Anger can be used to make changes or be a sign that something is wrong, such as injustice. But prolonged intense anger and rage can take over and fill you with negative energy. Counteract devaluing messages and find productive ways to express anger so that it won’t consume you.
5) Lack of Production/Academic Decline — Difficulties performing your job or academic challenges that weren’t present before is another sign that you or your child could be experiencing racial trauma. Recognize your trauma, take time to get support from loved ones and take care of yourself!
Racial Trauma & Families
Over the past decade alone, there have been numerous murders and other examples of racial injustices discussed in the public sphere. This means that if you have a child or children under 18 years of age, they have likely experienced at least three major national uprisings and protests as a result of racism and injustice (2012 Florida/Trayvon Martin, 2014 Ferguson/Michael Brown, 2015 Baltimore/Freddie Gray and Sandra Bland & 2020 Minneapolis/George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, not to mention countless other Black people who have been unjustly murdered). All of these public deaths along with one’s private experiences exacerbate the impact of Racial Trauma on families and children.
Many children and young adults are overwhelmed by trauma and what feels like frequent (constant) occurrences of injustice. Some are inspired and motivated to action and others may feel hopeless and in despair. You can support your children and family by engaging in difficult conversations, providing opportunities for them to share their feelings and fears and finding mechanisms of advocacy that you can engage in collectively. It’s important to get the help and support you need for yourself and your children. Having supportive teachers, colleagues and community to rely on can help to minimize the symptoms of racial trauma. It’s not made up, or an overreaction, it’s real and both your feelings and your children’s feelings are valid.
Dr. George James (@GeorgeTalks), Chief Innovation Officer, Senior Staff Therapist & Supervisor at Council for Relationships, Assistant Professor for the Couple and Family Therapy Program at Thomas Jefferson University and CEO of George Talks LLC.
Additional Resources:
Menakem, R. (2017). My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies. Las Vegas: Central Recovery Press. ISBN-13: 978-1942094470
Comas-Díaz, L., Hall, G. N., & Neville, H. A. (2019). Racial trauma: Theory, research, and healing: Introduction to the special issue. American Psychologist, 74(1), 1-5. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/amp0000442 - https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2019-01033-001.html
https://www.bc.edu/content/bc-web/schools/lynch-school/sites/isprc/isprc-advisory-board.html
Williams, M. (2015, September). The Link Between Racism and PTSD. Psychology Today
https://studylib.net/doc/11084190/combating-racial-trauma-definition-acknowledge
https://www.joydegruy.com/post-traumatic-slave-syndrome