
When the Past Lives in the Body: Understanding Intergenerational Trauma with Marlene Williams
Therapist ConfidentialShow Notes
In this episode of Therapist Confidential, Travis speaks with Dr. Marlene Williams of Texas Woman’s University about intergenerational trauma, ancestral wisdom, and what it really means to “break the cycle.” Together they explore how trauma is transmitted through families and culture—psychologically, relationally, and even genetically—and how healing can begin by reclaiming personal and collective stories.
Dr. Williams also shares insights from her work with Black women and mothers, offering a deeply human look at resilience, identity, and liberation through therapy.
The post When the Past Lives in the Body: Understanding Intergenerational Trauma with Marlene Williams appeared first on Psychotherapy.net.
More from Therapist Confidential
What happens when the “text me” is better than the actual me?
“In a dimensional approach, no person is left behind … no two people fit in exactly the same place.”
Who are you, really, underneath everything else? In this solo, Travis Heath questions a common assumption in therapy and everyday life: that a true, authentic self is waiting beneath our cultural expectations, family influences, and insecurities to be uncovered.
What do you say when a stranger in line at Universal Studios taps you on the shoulder and announces, “We all have a bet going — what are you?” Derrick Paladino, professor of counseling and department chair at Rollins College, has spent decades turning that question into “me-search.”
What if the goals we chase are quietly working against us? In this solo episode, host Travis Heath admits something that feels almost taboo for a therapist to say out loud: he thinks goals are overrated. He unpacks why the clients and grad students he works with so often hit a wall of “what’s next?” right after reaching a long-sought goal, why “achievement culture” quietly raises the bar until yesterday’s dream becomes today’s minimum expectation, and why chasing “more” may be the most dangerous goal of all.