During Black History Month in Canada, I’m reflecting on the impact of Iyanla Vanzant and the leadership of Black women who have shaped conversations about trauma and healing. We come from different racial histories and realities, but we share the lived experience of surviving child sexual violence and choosing healing. I honour her work while standing in my own responsibility to do this work where I am.
“Until you heal the wounds of your past, you are going to bleed. You can bandage the bleeding with food, with alcohol, with drugs, with work, with cigarettes, with sex; But eventually, it will all ooze through and stain your life. You must find the strength to open the wounds, Stick your hands inside, pull out the core of the pain that is holding you in your past, the memories and make peace with them.” ~ Iyanla Vanzant