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Decolonizing Therapy: Oppression, Historical Trauma, and Politicizing Your Practice
A call to action for therapists to politicize their practice through an emotional decolonial lens. An essential work that centers colonial and historical trauma in a framework for healing, Decolonizing Therapy illuminates that all therapy is―and always has been― inherently political. To better understand the mental health oppression and institutional violence that exists today, we must become familiar with the root of disembodiment from our histories, homelands, and healing practices. Only then will readers see how colonial, historical, and intergenerational legacies have always played a role in the treatment of mental health. This book is the emotional companion and guide to decolonization. It is an invitation for Eurocentrically trained clinicians to acknowledge privileged and oppressed parts while relearning what we thought we knew. Ignoring collective global trauma makes delivering effective therapy impossible; not knowing how to interrogate privilege (as a therapist, client, or both) makes healing elusive; and shying away from understanding how we as professionals may be participating in oppression is irresponsible. 15 black-and-white figures; 2 tables
480 pages, Hardcover
Published November 7, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
March 4, 2024
I wanted to like this book and I do love books that center on decolonizing therapy and the important stance therapists should take on being anti-racists and examining their own potential biases and privileges.
But I do not think this book is anything new from content already in existence. It also doesn’t feel like a lot of this book is actually productive in empowering people who have been oppressed as it feels like it places a blame game on people of the race of systemic oppressors as unable to understand or help or support and that they should just be angry (though of course anger is a healthy reaction to oppression but not without limits). I felt like she kept repeating the same sentiments over and over.
Yes, intergenerational trauma and migration patterns and epigenetics are important to discuss and should be a central part of treating someone holistically and not pathologizing their behaviors in an isolated context without understanding someone’s history. Yes yes yes. But also to the same note - someone’s family history is not the biggest point of consideration before their own personal history and possible bio-psycho considerations.
I think the tone is off-putting but many of the messages in the book are important and need to be heard.
But I do not think this book is anything new from content already in existence. It also doesn’t feel like a lot of this book is actually productive in empowering people who have been oppressed as it feels like it places a blame game on people of the race of systemic oppressors as unable to understand or help or support and that they should just be angry (though of course anger is a healthy reaction to oppression but not without limits). I felt like she kept repeating the same sentiments over and over.
Yes, intergenerational trauma and migration patterns and epigenetics are important to discuss and should be a central part of treating someone holistically and not pathologizing their behaviors in an isolated context without understanding someone’s history. Yes yes yes. But also to the same note - someone’s family history is not the biggest point of consideration before their own personal history and possible bio-psycho considerations.
I think the tone is off-putting but many of the messages in the book are important and need to be heard.
February 10, 2024
This is one of those books that you are proud to display in your bookshelf (for me, it’s an imaginary bookshelf in my future library). When I first heard about this coming out, I immediately said PREORDER, and my expectations were surpassed. Every therapist, everyone in the field of therapy and social work needs a copy of this book. A baseline to the concept of deconstructing the Western mental health institution, this book calls out for the need to uproot the systemic and ongoing harm that’s ridden in the system, shaping and negatively affecting practitioners and those seeking treatment of any kind.
As someone who is entering the field, I am so grateful to have opened up my abolitionist values to this work. I turned to social work to find ways to heal from the prevailing oppressive, capitalist system that rampages our everyday lives. Knowing that there isn’t any living institution that is exempt from the harmful values that make up Western society, I turn to this book to find inspiration for going forward, to learn how I can be a part of revolutionizing the field, to know where I do and don’t belong, to better understand why I am here in the first place.
This is a book I will turn back to again and again as I continue to grow and learn more about what it means to be a social worker and how to fight for a decolonized practice.
As someone who is entering the field, I am so grateful to have opened up my abolitionist values to this work. I turned to social work to find ways to heal from the prevailing oppressive, capitalist system that rampages our everyday lives. Knowing that there isn’t any living institution that is exempt from the harmful values that make up Western society, I turn to this book to find inspiration for going forward, to learn how I can be a part of revolutionizing the field, to know where I do and don’t belong, to better understand why I am here in the first place.
This is a book I will turn back to again and again as I continue to grow and learn more about what it means to be a social worker and how to fight for a decolonized practice.
October 12, 2024
Dr. Mullan went in. There was a blend of decolonizing practice, review of appropriated cultural practices and the unapologetic challenge of the colonial structures within of our mental health system. This book is so powerful.
November 14, 2023
Quite literally, life changing. Dr. Mullan has me feeling seen, heard, and valued after reading this book.
April 6, 2024
DNF - made it halfway through and this no longer feels like a valuable resource; thankfully, there are many available resources that address similar issues better. The ideas are repetitive and the tone is off-putting. Yes, we need to acknowledge research bias, epigenetics, and migration story. Yes, yes, yes. But why not offer more substantive advice for clinicians to move forward?
March 4, 2024
As a therapist of color, this book sees me on so many different levels. Sums up my whole journey so eloquently and has deepened my understanding and knowledge on how to do quality work in my career. As a new therapist in the field, during a genocide…this book was heaven sent to help guide me in my career journey. I felt so lost these past couple of months, left so dumbfounded surrounded by social workers who have no regard to talk about current events yet after reading this book felt so much more confident, grounded and validated to trust my own intuition to help clients of color on their path towards healing.
10/10
10/10
April 15, 2024
This is a truly fantastic read. Enlightening, insightful, thought provoking. Not only is it an indictment of the Mental Health Industrial Complex, but it is also a guidebook of where to go next. Although not prescriptive, there are countless pages of questions practitioners can reflect on to do their own internal work to move forward and decolonize the systems they work in. I wish I could have read this book sooner and firmly believe it should be required reading for literally every student in mental health fields across the board. Could not recommend more highly.
April 19, 2024
Makes me rage. Makes me hope. Makes me imagine. Makes me feel a connection that I already knew was there. Makes me real fucking glad I consumed this now as I’m going through my education rather than after I’ve already started practicing.
October 2, 2024
Writing style frustrated me. The book felt more like a political speech, addressing crucial issues, but light on details how those ideals could be accomplished. I was hoping for and expected a lot more specific take-aways. Found the short section of resources at the end to be most helpful
July 18, 2024
Found this book very validating when it comes to how I feel about what I learn in my psych program and what type of therapist I would like to be. It's a thought provoking must-read for those in the mental health and healing sphere.
November 20, 2024
amazing
I actually loved this and was able to digest a lot more that I initially anticipated. Books like this can feel daunting and I don’t think I would have picked it up if I hadn’t been required for class. But I am so so glad I did. I want much of this if not all to inform my practice as a clinician and I want to be a partner in the work of decolonizing therapy !! I think this will be a book I continuously come back to.
I actually loved this and was able to digest a lot more that I initially anticipated. Books like this can feel daunting and I don’t think I would have picked it up if I hadn’t been required for class. But I am so so glad I did. I want much of this if not all to inform my practice as a clinician and I want to be a partner in the work of decolonizing therapy !! I think this will be a book I continuously come back to.
March 19, 2024
*4.5- Such a needed book that doesn't pull punches. Mullan, shows the blatant favoritism to theories, clinicians, and conceptions that cater to white European backgrounds. She makes great points around aspects around the theoretical approaches that are adopted which are directly linked to the evidence that validates them. She explains that those approaches are only given the opportunity to have evidence because they are backed by institutions which are in themselves catering to the privileged perspectives that give the finances for research. Thus, it's the wealthy funding the theories that make sense to them and it turn predicating a white bias. These are then brought into insurances due to the "evidence" that validated them, which further validates a white perspective as "correct". Understanding this on a clinician perspective, it broadened my perspective to recognize that I have to be more open to being uncomfortable with my own white fragility to expand my theories and compassion to others.
April 9, 2024
You should read this book. Especially if you are in a helping profession. ESPECIALLY if you are in a mental health profession. It’s heavy and a lot but has so much good and rich information. I will be processing this for a while and I feel like it has opened several doors that are going to make me a better practitioner.
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January 23, 2024This book should be required reading for everyone in social work/counseling school, and also for those in practice, for that matter. Dr. Mullan does a a fantastic job of outlining what decolonializing therapy might look like and has given me a lot to chew on for my own practice.
September 10, 2024
this was a very difficult book to read at first. as a mhp i felt indicted alongside the entire mental health industry. there were some painful reflections that mhp’s will have to endure to read this book. I see in the reviews that many mhp’s dnf due to unwillingness to sit in that discomfort, which is so telling, especially given how we require our clients to sit in discomfort on a daily basis. this book envisions a mental health industry that feels so out of reach at times, but can feel closer to our grasps if we are willing to imagine how runs can be different and are willing to sacrifice the comfort that comes with sticking to the status quo. mhp’s are called to begin decolonizing their professional work through exploring the histories of their families and their people, by uncovering stories of displacement and generational grief. we can only decolonize our professional work and this industry once we accept where we fit in this story. this book leans more reflective that practical, which can be frustrating for professionals like myself indoctrinated by white supremacist and capitalistic beliefs of “doing” as a measure of progress. but i would encourage all mhp endure lol and read this book.
August 22, 2024
Such a profound work of how to dismantle white supremacy, imperialism, colonialism, and capitalism from therapeutic practice. This book will be a reference for my therapy relationships for the rest of my career.
October 25, 2024
This book was everything I was looking for in my social work degree. I am affirmed. I am seen.
This is the healing we need and deserve. Thank you Dr. Mullan for putting into words what our souls know.
This is the healing we need and deserve. Thank you Dr. Mullan for putting into words what our souls know.
October 27, 2024
This is literally the best and most needed book I've ever read in the field of therapy. I already practice this way, but have never found a book to support it. This is what I want taught in graduate schools.
July 20, 2024
heavy yet beautiful and so much to unpack, but already going back through with sticky notes because I didn’t the first time! 😙🤌🏽
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August 19, 2024A good read with lots of important info.
Read
October 1, 2024DNF - putting this aside for another time. I liked what i read so far but need more quiet time to sit with the next 2/3
December 3, 2024
Excellent tips for decolonizing your therapy practice but also for life. Special care given to provide real practice questions and journal prompts for clients as well as for the care giver. I read the audio but need a copy of this as a resource!
December 4, 2024
4.5/5. Read this for school and am so glad I own it. Intense and will stay with me for a long time!
November 25, 2024
for school. was good and intense. kinda a debbie downer but in a sorta inspiring way
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March 24, 2024 @decolonizingtherapy writes, “Your entire education HAS been a form of colonization. We have been taught to medicalize and treat symptoms, yet we continue to ignore the soul wounds of historical trauma and colonization. We victim-blame by focusing on personal deficiencies and trauma, rather than structural violence.”
Is the medical/mental health industrial complex broken? Or is it working exactly the way it was intended to, or must, because it was founded by a white, capitalist, patriarchy? “Decolonization doesn’t mean “diversity,” it refers to the collective journey toward undoing systemic and individual harm on people, land, cultures, our emotional health, and physical bodies. We are being asked to look at who has taught us, what have they taught, who has it been approved by, and why. Decolonization is a process of asking ourselves: “Whose history is this?””How do your words and actions seek to address what has been stolen/lost?” and “How we can heal?”
This book gave me a lot to think about! My favorite part was near the end, where the author explains her Somatic Soul Trauma Timeline exercise. Similar to a genogram, but with more breadth, it takes into account personal, collective, ancestral, intergenerational, and political experiences. I also loved her invitation to unlearn the following: ”Move away from pathologizing. Practice energetic boundaries, not just physical and emotional ones. Honor righteous rage within mental health. Question professionalism. Hold more spaces for queerness, especially nonbinary and trans folks. Bring all of your own identities into the room when appropriate. Chew on the difference between therapy and healing. Be aware that therapists were trained under white supremacy (consciously or not).”
Is the medical/mental health industrial complex broken? Or is it working exactly the way it was intended to, or must, because it was founded by a white, capitalist, patriarchy? “Decolonization doesn’t mean “diversity,” it refers to the collective journey toward undoing systemic and individual harm on people, land, cultures, our emotional health, and physical bodies. We are being asked to look at who has taught us, what have they taught, who has it been approved by, and why. Decolonization is a process of asking ourselves: “Whose history is this?””How do your words and actions seek to address what has been stolen/lost?” and “How we can heal?”
This book gave me a lot to think about! My favorite part was near the end, where the author explains her Somatic Soul Trauma Timeline exercise. Similar to a genogram, but with more breadth, it takes into account personal, collective, ancestral, intergenerational, and political experiences. I also loved her invitation to unlearn the following: ”Move away from pathologizing. Practice energetic boundaries, not just physical and emotional ones. Honor righteous rage within mental health. Question professionalism. Hold more spaces for queerness, especially nonbinary and trans folks. Bring all of your own identities into the room when appropriate. Chew on the difference between therapy and healing. Be aware that therapists were trained under white supremacy (consciously or not).”
September 13, 2024
I feel conflicted about this book. While the message is a great one, the actual writing of the book really grated me. It should have easily been half of its size because there is SO much repetition of the same phrases, concepts, ideas. In one chapter the author used the word "deeply" so much, I started a drinking game.
I understand that for some folks repetition may be needed to have the concepts sink in, but I just got bored of reading the same thing over and over again.
I would only recommend this to someone who is just getting into decolonizing work and is very unfamiliar with any concepts about it. For others, this book feels like one to get what you need and get out.
I understand that for some folks repetition may be needed to have the concepts sink in, but I just got bored of reading the same thing over and over again.
I would only recommend this to someone who is just getting into decolonizing work and is very unfamiliar with any concepts about it. For others, this book feels like one to get what you need and get out.
December 19, 2024
This book has a passionate author and an important premise, but it's trying to be and do too many things at once. I'd describe it as a biblical-length polemic on the sordid history and destructive nature of our current mental health systems -- interwoven with personal anecdotes, summaries of other people's research, long bullet-point lists, and long lists of prompts for further reflection. It's unfortunately very repetitive, and not organized in a way that makes intuitive sense. It needs several rounds of developmental editing.
Substance-wise, it's ironic that a book on "decolonizing therapy" leans so heavily on abstract critiques, institutional language, research citations, and bullet-point lists. I was hoping for more storytelling, more of an immersive focus on the narratives of actual people and communities collectively endeavoring to do what systems have failed to do.
It's also strange that, despite the hundreds of pages of decrying the current system, there's little space devoted to challenging the model of therapy itself as a professionalized, primarily individualistic practice. Therapy, as it's currently practiced, only makes sense in a capitalistic world where community members don't feel equipped to hold space for each other, and/or can't rely on each other to co-hold their healing and discovery processes. I'd imagine that truly "decolonizing therapy" might mean dismantling the construct of healing as something we do as individuals in private rooms with paid professionals. It might mean exploring what it would look like to abolish the therapeutic industrial complex, and to develop local community-based cultures of healing instead. This book barely grazed the surface of these possibilities and, for me, sadly missed the mark.
Substance-wise, it's ironic that a book on "decolonizing therapy" leans so heavily on abstract critiques, institutional language, research citations, and bullet-point lists. I was hoping for more storytelling, more of an immersive focus on the narratives of actual people and communities collectively endeavoring to do what systems have failed to do.
It's also strange that, despite the hundreds of pages of decrying the current system, there's little space devoted to challenging the model of therapy itself as a professionalized, primarily individualistic practice. Therapy, as it's currently practiced, only makes sense in a capitalistic world where community members don't feel equipped to hold space for each other, and/or can't rely on each other to co-hold their healing and discovery processes. I'd imagine that truly "decolonizing therapy" might mean dismantling the construct of healing as something we do as individuals in private rooms with paid professionals. It might mean exploring what it would look like to abolish the therapeutic industrial complex, and to develop local community-based cultures of healing instead. This book barely grazed the surface of these possibilities and, for me, sadly missed the mark.
June 19, 2024
the intro had me hyped and the first few chapters were good. i love the questions, prompts, and affirmations in each chapter.
got a bit redundant towards the end. the last couple chapters were disappointing and lacked in connecting some things that i really hoped was going to be talked about but just dropped off instead.
author mentions her “neurodivergence” without specifying and talks about being an empath/highly sensitive person, which is just autism for people that don’t want to think of themselves as autistic bc of ableism and society’s bs misception of asd. imo.
could’ve been a great way to call that out and decolonize that in the book but it didn’t.
it’s a good starter point for decolonizing therapy. a lot is included but as she said decolonizing is an ongoing process.
got a bit redundant towards the end. the last couple chapters were disappointing and lacked in connecting some things that i really hoped was going to be talked about but just dropped off instead.
author mentions her “neurodivergence” without specifying and talks about being an empath/highly sensitive person, which is just autism for people that don’t want to think of themselves as autistic bc of ableism and society’s bs misception of asd. imo.
could’ve been a great way to call that out and decolonize that in the book but it didn’t.
it’s a good starter point for decolonizing therapy. a lot is included but as she said decolonizing is an ongoing process.
February 23, 2024
Wow! What a book. I believe EVERY mental health professional should read this during their school years. It’s raw, vulnerable, eye-opening, and inspiring. I took so many things from it and have been more aware of it in the therapy room as well as outside the office. I highly recommend it to anyone who truly wants to make a difference in the mental health world. I’m reaching out to the author soon because she deserves to know how amazing her book is and what’s it’s done for me and my clients. I recommend it to ALL of my therapist friends. I’m glad one of my friends brought my attention to it.
December 21, 2023
Dr. Mullan's book’s central premise is a sound one: we need to widen our cultural bio-psycho-social lens to include intergenerational traumas and family history, including migrations and displacements (or in more current nomenclature: “colonialism”).
The book has some strong features:
1) Identifying the role of intergenerational trauma and uniting it with attachment theory and epigenetics;
2) An important role for “unlearning” cultural and racial biases so that we can deepening our client-centered understanding of multi-generational traumas;
3) A very important examination of power imbalances in therapy and the role of medical nomenclature that pathologizes vs. humanizing persons and their contexts.
However, it ends there. My main criticism of this book is that there are several aspects that are underdeveloped at best, and unnecessarily incendiary or outright dangerous at worst:
1) It read to me as if there is a self-servicing bias at play in her over-emphasis of the role of colonial trauma in case-formulation: her thesis is that colonialist history is at the very root of all individual “pathology”. I can see how in some instances that is true, but to say that is true of ALL individuals is the opposite of client-centered.
2) Similarly, she instructs us not to overemphasize individual responsibility for their therapy-related problems. I appreciate the gesture to rectify the power imbalance. Yes, we ought to feel validly outraged when we are legitimately oppressed – assertive anger is indeed quite healthy. However, it is imperative that there remains a role for individual or personalizing responsibility. Without this, it reinforces an externalization of responsibility, which can actually impede healing and a sense of self-efficacy.
3) Similarly to 2), the book lends itself too easily to a radicalized lens; at some point, rage no longer promotes dialogues and it begins to promote a narrative of ‘well you oppressed me, and now, I’m fighting back by whatever means I can’. This might be very helpful in an authoritarian society, but how can we endorse indiscriminate and unrestrained rage as a solution to a problem in a lawful society? I struggle to think how you can honour rage without limits in a democratic society. Also, can’t one be both an oppressor and oppressed? Why is it either/or?
4) She talks about blurring boundaries of therapy in the name of giving back privilege. This is a nice idea; however, it is potentially dangerous in certain situations. I appreciate this gesture; however, this needs to be better qualified.
5) There is a sense of ‘throwing the baby out with the bath water’. She undermines evidence-based therapy and identifies it an additional form of oppression because some of the more indigenous healing practices have not had the opportunity to garner research support. Can’t we do both?
6) The book feels very split in an odd fashion: The bulk of the book has a lot of good points and references; however, the first chapters are written in a completely different style and voice to the point of being quite preachy and sensationalist. It feels very disjointed. The idea of “politicizing” therapy feels quite sensationalized considering that she seems to be truly advocating for broadening the lens of client-centered care – which is a very respectable and well-received idea.
Finally, I struggle to write these criticisms because I imagine that the retort would be: “well, you just didn’t understand the book”, or “you are not aware of or willing to give up your privilege and therefore you are an oppressor”. I could also foresee the argument of, “well, action needs to be bold and extreme to overcome decades or centuries of colonization”. In my opinion, this reasoning is circular and dangerous. And for the record, I identify as someone who would typically be included in DEI/EDI initiatives - I identify as a marginalized segment of the population.
To be clear, I am a big fan of Dr. Mullan’s ideas. However, the bulk of these are not novel. I am not a fan of the delivery and the lack of balance.
I also want to point out the contradiction in Dr. Mullan’s ardent support of Gaza and Palestinians in her social media posts: Dr. Mullan, please understand that much of the Jewish response to Oct 7 is rooted within their own experiences as victims colonialist oppression and history. Jews are indigenous to Israel – their presence in Israel predates those of the Palestinians. Jews have their own traumatic history of oppression as evidenced through the Holocaust and numerous pogroms throughout history. What's even more hypocritical is that much of the argument in the book for the role of intergenerational trauma is actually based on the research of Holocaust survivors! I fail to see how you can support Gaza and Palestine - and not Israel - while also supporting an agenda of decolonization. Dr Mullan, please do better.
The book has some strong features:
1) Identifying the role of intergenerational trauma and uniting it with attachment theory and epigenetics;
2) An important role for “unlearning” cultural and racial biases so that we can deepening our client-centered understanding of multi-generational traumas;
3) A very important examination of power imbalances in therapy and the role of medical nomenclature that pathologizes vs. humanizing persons and their contexts.
However, it ends there. My main criticism of this book is that there are several aspects that are underdeveloped at best, and unnecessarily incendiary or outright dangerous at worst:
1) It read to me as if there is a self-servicing bias at play in her over-emphasis of the role of colonial trauma in case-formulation: her thesis is that colonialist history is at the very root of all individual “pathology”. I can see how in some instances that is true, but to say that is true of ALL individuals is the opposite of client-centered.
2) Similarly, she instructs us not to overemphasize individual responsibility for their therapy-related problems. I appreciate the gesture to rectify the power imbalance. Yes, we ought to feel validly outraged when we are legitimately oppressed – assertive anger is indeed quite healthy. However, it is imperative that there remains a role for individual or personalizing responsibility. Without this, it reinforces an externalization of responsibility, which can actually impede healing and a sense of self-efficacy.
3) Similarly to 2), the book lends itself too easily to a radicalized lens; at some point, rage no longer promotes dialogues and it begins to promote a narrative of ‘well you oppressed me, and now, I’m fighting back by whatever means I can’. This might be very helpful in an authoritarian society, but how can we endorse indiscriminate and unrestrained rage as a solution to a problem in a lawful society? I struggle to think how you can honour rage without limits in a democratic society. Also, can’t one be both an oppressor and oppressed? Why is it either/or?
4) She talks about blurring boundaries of therapy in the name of giving back privilege. This is a nice idea; however, it is potentially dangerous in certain situations. I appreciate this gesture; however, this needs to be better qualified.
5) There is a sense of ‘throwing the baby out with the bath water’. She undermines evidence-based therapy and identifies it an additional form of oppression because some of the more indigenous healing practices have not had the opportunity to garner research support. Can’t we do both?
6) The book feels very split in an odd fashion: The bulk of the book has a lot of good points and references; however, the first chapters are written in a completely different style and voice to the point of being quite preachy and sensationalist. It feels very disjointed. The idea of “politicizing” therapy feels quite sensationalized considering that she seems to be truly advocating for broadening the lens of client-centered care – which is a very respectable and well-received idea.
Finally, I struggle to write these criticisms because I imagine that the retort would be: “well, you just didn’t understand the book”, or “you are not aware of or willing to give up your privilege and therefore you are an oppressor”. I could also foresee the argument of, “well, action needs to be bold and extreme to overcome decades or centuries of colonization”. In my opinion, this reasoning is circular and dangerous. And for the record, I identify as someone who would typically be included in DEI/EDI initiatives - I identify as a marginalized segment of the population.
To be clear, I am a big fan of Dr. Mullan’s ideas. However, the bulk of these are not novel. I am not a fan of the delivery and the lack of balance.
I also want to point out the contradiction in Dr. Mullan’s ardent support of Gaza and Palestinians in her social media posts: Dr. Mullan, please understand that much of the Jewish response to Oct 7 is rooted within their own experiences as victims colonialist oppression and history. Jews are indigenous to Israel – their presence in Israel predates those of the Palestinians. Jews have their own traumatic history of oppression as evidenced through the Holocaust and numerous pogroms throughout history. What's even more hypocritical is that much of the argument in the book for the role of intergenerational trauma is actually based on the research of Holocaust survivors! I fail to see how you can support Gaza and Palestine - and not Israel - while also supporting an agenda of decolonization. Dr Mullan, please do better.
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