By Mental Health America
Racial trauma, or race-based traumatic stress (RBTS), refers to the mental and emotional injury caused by encounters with racial bias and ethnic discrimination, racism, and hate crimes. Any individual that has experienced an emotionally painful, sudden, and uncontrollable racist encounter is at risk of suffering from a race-based traumatic stress injury. In the U.S., Black, Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) are most vulnerable due to living under a system of white supremacy.
Experiences of race-based discrimination can have detrimental psychological impacts on individuals and their wider communities. In some individuals, prolonged incidents of racism can lead to symptoms like those experienced with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Share This Post!
How Childhood Abuse Changes the Brain
By Leonard Holmes Studies have demonstrated over and over that childhood abuse and neglect results in permanent changes to the developing human brain. These changes in brain structure appear to be significant [...]
Traumatic Experiences Widespread Among U.S. Youth
By the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Princeton, N.J.—New national data show that at least 38 percent of children in every state have had at least one Adverse Childhood Experience or ACE, such [...]
Childhood Trauma May Shorten Life By 20 Years
By Joseph Brownstein While it may not come as a surprise that survivors of childhood traumas have more difficult lives, a new study says that those children can also expect their [...]
Treating Child Abuse Trauma With EMDR
By Deborah R. Huso EMDR has been successful in treating trauma from childhood abuse in victims and survivors young and old. With more than 3 million instances of child abuse reported [...]
Cardboard Treasure Box
by Shawn Alex Nemeth In a single night, the twisted culmination of all my childhood fears was magnified tenfold when I heard the blood-curdling screams of my mother and sister end with [...]