Right now, as a result of your unresolved first-generation trauma background, you may be experiencing…
- A sense of straddling two worlds – the one your parents came from and the one you long to inhabit.
- Guilt and confusion about what you’ve gone through and the context of the pain you experienced.
- Anxiety, depression, and a sense of being stuck, not knowing what to do.
- Anger at your parents and feeling like you can’t show it.
- Isolation since no one in your community acknowledges your experience as abuse.
You’re realizing that your unresolved first-generation trauma is getting in the way of your life…
- You can’t seem to make decisions rooted in what you truly want; only from places of should and what others want.
- You feel like an imposter in so many life settings, not knowing how to navigate the worlds you inhabit.
- You live with a heightened sense of anxiety and hypervigilance that doesn’t reflect your current circumstances.
- You want to set boundaries but have no idea how to do this given the complexity of being first-generation.
- Your anger at your parents is getting in the way of having the kind of relationship you’d like to have with them.
You’re wondering…
- What even is first-generation trauma? Is being the child of immigrants and systemic cycle breakers something that even counts as trauma?
- So much of what I went through is cultural context – those are the expectations of our culture. How do I resolve that reality with the reality that how my parents treated me felt traumatic?
- How can I have healthy, functional boundaries and relationships with them if the concept of boundaries is foreign to them?
- Can a therapist who’s not from my cultural background get my experience?
- Will trauma therapy be a support to someone like me who’s first-generation?
You’re longing for…
- A healthy, functional life that includes your family of origin but you have no idea how to integrate these two desires.
- Clarity about how the strain your immigrant and cycle-breaking parents went through impacted you and, more importantly, how you can resolve it.
- A true sense of confidence instead of feeling like an imposter every day.
- An ability to say no, to set good boundaries, and not have to be the over-functioning one for everyone else all the time.
- Healthier coping mechanisms and tools to cope with the mental health strain you’ve been experiencing.
What you’re longing for is possible.
At Evergreen Counseling, we have a staff of seasoned, evidence-based therapists skilled in treating first-generation trauma.
How we can help you
By pursuing therapy for first-generation trauma, you can imagine the following:
Feeling trapped and stuck when it comes to setting boundaries with your family.
You have kind, clear, firm boundaries and can set them with people in your life.
An incessant sense of internal pressure, to keep achieving, earning, and creating stability and safety for everyone.
Decreased internalized pressure, the ability to take action with more choice.
Feeling beholden, guilty, and ashamed that you would even have anger and sadness about and with your parents.
The ability to hold both perspectives: love for your parents and compassion for their context but also the validation of your painful feelings and acknowledgment of the impact they had on you.
A sense of powerlessness about your choices in life because of being first-generation and having so much pressure on you.
More clarity about what you need and want and an ability to act from this place versus acting from a place of should.
What if I’m Not Ready?
If you don’t feel quite ready to book a complimentary consult call yet, that’s completely fine.
We don’t want you to feel pressured and we know that the choice to seek out therapy can feel difficult.
Part of you wants to do it, and another part of you is, perhaps, scared to begin because of the feelings you might have to finally feel.
Or a part of you questions whether or not you can even be helped at all.
Whatever the reason, no matter how ready or not ready you feel to begin therapy, we want you to have the information you need to make an informed choice.
So, to that end, please explore the additional information below to learn more about us and how we can help you.
We’ll be here whenever you’re ready to reach out for support.
