If you are a person of color who has experienced repeated trauma--such as discrimination, race-related verbal assault, racial stigmatization, poverty, sexual trauma, or interpersonal violence--you may struggle with intense feelings of anger, mistrust, or shame. You may feel unsafe or uncomfortable in your own body, or struggle with building and keeping close relationships. Sometimes you may feel very alone in your pain. But you are not alone. This groundbreaking work illuminates the phenomena of complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD) as it is uniquely experienced by people of color, and provides a much-needed path to health and wholeness.

Natalie Y. Gutiérrez, LMFT, is founder of Mindful Journeys Marriage & Family Therapy PLLC, and a licensed marriage and family therapist working primarily with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) survivors of complex trauma—ranging from racial trauma, sexual trauma, attachment trauma, and intergenerational trauma. Natalie is a certified internal family systems therapist and prospective trainer at the IFS Institute. Natalie’s individual and group healing work blends the intersections of psychotherapy, activism, and curanderismo. She has more than 23,000 followers on Instagram, where she shares her journey of healing and empowerment. She currently resides in New York, NY.

Tasha Hunter, MSW, LCSW (she/her) is Black, queer, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, owner of Ascension Growth Center, PLLC, and Internal Family Systems therapist. She is also an Air Force veteran, author of her memoir, "What Children Remember", contributing author for " She Lives Her Truth",  and host of the podcast " When We Speak". She is passionate about speaking about childhood trauma, suicide, and collective healing and liberation. Since becoming a therapist in 2017, her experience includes working in community mental health, schools, and outpatient settings. Tasha specializes in treating Black, BIPOC, and LGBTQ+ clients who are working through parental abuse/neglect, white supremacy culture, legacy burdens, life transition, grief, infertility, spiritual/religious trauma, and sexual identity.

The Pain We Carry | A conversation with Natalie Gutierrez and Tasha Hunter