Have you ever heard of inherited family trauma? In his book, It Didn’t Start with You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End The Cycle, Mark Wolynn summarizes and uses years of research that reveals this truth – the roots of issues such as depression, anxiety, chronic pain, phobias, and obsessive thoughts often starts from traumas of parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. There is an emotional inheritance that we have that passes through families, not just a material one. These emotional inheritances are hidden in our gene expression and our language, and they play a role in our health.
When you look at your family, it is important to acknowledge the places of pain that your parents and grandparents endured. Even if your family is not “important” in your day-to-day life, it is absolutely necessary, if not more necessary, if there is cut off- to observe the family inheritance of pain, trauma, and other patterns.
In Wolynn’s book, he invites you to take a look at the family story and identify the core complaint, core descriptors, core sentence, and core trauma. By doing so, he guides you to explore within yourself the fears you have, and repair them.
Need some help on this journey? The counselors at Amy Wine Counseling Center are here for you. Check out our website to schedule an appointment, and we will help you get started.
Sarah Dailey, LPC
I help my clients as they walk through life’s valleys. Meeting them in the dark places to acknowledge and support my clients enables them to explore and discover their own worth and value. Just as we are hurt in relationships, I believe that we are also healed in relationship with one another. Together, we will find the tools and insight to process your experience and hopefully you will leave feeling encouraged. In particular, I enjoy marriage and family therapy.
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