Sounds of SAND Trauma Healing: Gabor Maté, Judy Atkinson, Patricia June Vickers, Diana Kopua, Del Laverdure
Nov 27, 2025
In a thought-provoking discussion, Judy Atkinson, an Indigenous Australian practitioner, shares insights on healing colonial trauma. Patricia June Vickers, an artist and psychotherapist, blends modern trauma techniques with ancestral wisdom. Māori psychiatrist Diana Kopua emphasizes the importance of land in wellness, critiquing Western trauma narratives. Del Laverdure, a Crow Nation leader, highlights community-based healing practices. The panel explores storytelling's power, the role of ceremony, and practical steps for healing intergenerational wounds.
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Ancestry As Active Healing Power
- Ancestry and land are active sources of health, not just history or metaphor.
- Invoking ancestors and songs in ceremony creates healing fields that connect past and present.
From Crisis Calls To Healing Practice
- Judy described decades of responding to crises like mass arrests for child sexual assault.
- She learned to listen, regulate, and rebuild attachment before recommending action.
The Limits Of 'Trauma' As A Label
- 'Trauma' as a medical label can individualize and westernize collective harms.
- Diana warns the term may re-center professional power and erase communal, historical meanings.
