The Blog

Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma

July 29, 2022

What have we inherited from our parents and grandparents in addition to eye color, height, tastes,...

Intergenerational Trauma

July 18, 2022

Most all of us grow up in the context of a family unit. This family unit...

The Effects of Our Mothers’ Traumas on Our Mental Health

June 1, 2022

Mother to Son – Langston Hughes  Well, son, I’ll tell you: Life for me ain’t been...

How Developmental Trauma Affects Attachment

February 28, 2022

Brain Development The human brain helps us process and understand our environment while also developing basic...

Racial Trauma and Post-Traumatic Growth

January 28, 2022

Today, we will briefly explore what healing from racial trauma looks like through the lens of...

When Healing is Lonely

August 23, 2021

Therapy as healing One of the best parts of this job is hearing people’s stories. I...

[VIDEO] African American Teens in Foster Care

June 16, 2021

Hosted by therapist Alexandra Hoerr  Candace is a clinical resident at Optimum Joy talking with Alex...

Leave the Canoe: Outgrowing Your Defense Mechanisms

May 27, 2021

Defense mechanisms get a bad rap, but what are they really? Defense mechanisms are often misunderstood,...

Harry Potter and the Journey through Trauma

May 13, 2021

  Whenever someone asks me about my approach to therapy, I talk about therapy in terms...

[VIDEO] DR. Quistad – Religious Abuse & Spiritual Manipulation

August 6, 2020

Dr. Anna Quistad (called Dr. Q around these parts), joins Optimum Joy founder Alexandra Hoerr to...