Decolonizing the Therapy Room: A Call to Integrative Awareness
For My Fellow Therapists and Healers Striving Beyond Cultural Competence
The first system we dismantle is within ourselves.
Why is it difficult for many to consider and even embrace that mental health is political? Mainly because of our own upbringing, biases, assumptions on how we believe therapy is meant to look, and the programming we've received in our graduate or training programs.
The founding theorists within our profession have much in common and privilege in being men, White, or White-presenting. However, some theories evolved as a response to wartime trauma and anti-semitism. Relatedly, psychological theory is often a reaction to the cultural and political atmosphere of the communities they serve, reflecting the needs and interests of people within that time. Therapists' role in the lives of the clients they work with offers some insight into the expectations of the shared process. How much of an authority figure or all-knowing expert a therapist is will then guide how little the therapist shares or shows about themselves. This isn't limited to the explicit self-disclosure skill we all know. Instead, we "show ourselves" by signaling through the clothes we wear, our facial expressions, how we greet our clients when they arrive, the decorations we have in our office, and how our website and biographies are worded. We share who we are before the clients begin the deep processing work, and even if we do, they will still have their own opinions and assumptions of who we are in a way that our founding theories never imagined. Clients may also gravitate toward us because there is a familiarity within our signaling or identities that provide comfort or assumed understanding.
Our role in therapy is essential because many of us are trained to be a blank slate or distant party from our client's therapeutic process. This is becoming an increasingly irrelevant matter with social media and telehealth options, inviting clients into even our home offices and seeing our pets in the background. How do we lower the veil of power and authority while demonstrating healthy boundaries and respect for our clients? As we encourage clients, we must also engage in self-awareness and introspection as to whether or not we are ready.
An integrative awareness is the stance we must take to understand how to empower and equip others in the therapy process. This stance embodies inclusivity because traditional theories, concepts, and therapeutic methods were not initially designed considering these communities.As clinicians, we delve into grassroots wisdom, weaving a vibrant tapestry of interventions that resonates deeply with those seeking our support. The collaborative creation of knowledge and the passing down of stories isn't unfamiliar to those who've faced oppression. When resources or knowledge are scarce, we pull together what we know and what we have to create what we need. In this way, an integrative approach is no different: a reflection of the resilient nature of ourselves and the people we serve. We are adaptive by nature, sculpting our paths when traditional systems fail to accommodate us. Within this resilience lies an awe-inspiring beauty and fortitude that warrants celebration. While our conversations in this manual may explore quests for identity, the essence of belonging, and the pursuit of wholeness, let's remember: our focus isn't solely on endured hardships, but on honoring the indomitable spirit within that endurance.