Melissa Williams is the creator of the YouTube channel Lostat50Something and the originator of the “Backwards Confession,” a powerful practice of entering a confessional not to seek absolution, but to name the harm caused by certain church doctrines and actions — and then to offer forgiveness as an act of reclaiming personal power and peace. This deeply personal ritual has become the foundation for a budding movement and online community, r/BackwardsConfession, where individuals are encouraged to engage in similar acts of active forgiveness and liberation from institutional harm.Through this work, Melissa offers a unique perspective on healing from religious trauma, challenging institutional power dynamics, reclaiming agency in the face of patriarchal structures, and transforming pain into empowerment. By sharing her own story and guiding others in this practice, she hopes to open new pathways for those navigating religious deconstruction and seeking healing beyond traditional frameworks.In This EpisodeMelissa’s websiteBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-trauma-therapist--5739761/support.You can learn more about what I do here:The Trauma Therapist Newsletter: celebrates the people and voices in the mental health profession. And it's free! Check it out here: https://bit.ly/4jGBeSa———If you’d like to support The Trauma Therapist Podcast and the work I do you can do that here with a monthly donation of $5, $7, or $10: Donate to The Trauma Therapist Podcast.Click here to join my email list and receive podcast updates and other news.Thank you to our Sponsors:Incogni - Use code [traumatherapist] and get 60% off annual plans: https://incogni.com/traumatherapistJane App - use code GUY1MO at https://jane.app/book_a_demoJourney Clinical - visit https://join.journeyclinical/trauma for 1 month off your membershipTherapy Wisdom - https://therapywisdom.com/jan/
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Tell Me About Your Tattoo with Calvin Armerding
Calvin Armerding is a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor based in South Carolina, specializing in Adlerian psychology. He regularly leads workshops, offers retreats, and gives keynotes on topics such as grief, couples counseling, and trauma. His recent work explores trauma as what Alfred Adler described as an “exogenous factor” — an external event that collides with an individual’s internal narrative, purpose, and movement.Calvin teaches a model that integrates trauma with Adlerian lifestyle investigation, framing trauma not as a fixed, defining event but as a disruption that can reveal or amplify a client’s core convictions, compensations, and private logic. This approach helps both clinicians and clients reconnect with agency, courage, and belonging without minimizing pain or pathologizing symptoms. In This EpisodeCalvin’s websiteBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-trauma-therapist--5739761/support.You can learn more about what I do here:The Trauma Therapist Newsletter: celebrates the people and voices in the mental health profession. And it's free! Check it out here: https://bit.ly/4jGBeSa———If you’d like to support The Trauma Therapist Podcast and the work I do you can do that here with a monthly donation of $5, $7, or $10: Donate to The Trauma Therapist Podcast.Click here to join my email list and receive podcast updates and other news.Thank you to our Sponsors:Incogni - Use code [traumatherapist] and get 60% off annual plans: https://incogni.com/traumatherapistJane App - use code GUY1MO at https://jane.app/book_a_demoJourney Clinical - visit https://join.journeyclinical/trauma for 1 month off your membershipTherapy Wisdom - https://therapywisdom.com/jan/
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Holistic Fertility Care with Gabriela Rosa
Gabriela Rosa is the founder and CEO of The Rosa Institute, the world’s first entirely virtual and holistic fertility clinic. She is a Harvard-trained fertility specialist who has spent decades not only treating the biological side of reproductive health but also holding space for the psychological pain that comes with it. Her clinical insights are matched by her deep empathy for what her patients go through and her belief that we need to start calling this what it is: a trauma that deserves to be witnessed and treated with compassion. In This EpisodeGabriella’s websiteFertility BreakthroughBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-trauma-therapist--5739761/support.You can learn more about what I do here:The Trauma Therapist Newsletter: celebrates the people and voices in the mental health profession. And it's free! Check it out here: https://bit.ly/4jGBeSa———If you’d like to support The Trauma Therapist Podcast and the work I do you can do that here with a monthly donation of $5, $7, or $10: Donate to The Trauma Therapist Podcast.Click here to join my email list and receive podcast updates and other news.Thank you to our Sponsors:Incogni - Use code [traumatherapist] and get 60% off annual plans: https://incogni.com/traumatherapistJane App - use code GUY1MO at https://jane.app/book_a_demoJourney Clinical - visit https://join.journeyclinical/trauma for 1 month off your membershipTherapy Wisdom - https://therapywisdom.com/jan/
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Photograph What's In Front of You with Dennis Church
Dennis Church, 76, has been a photographer for 50 years and has used the quiet act of photographing the world around him to navigate childhood trauma, addiction, and shame. His forthcoming book, DIRT FRESH (Fall Line Press, Atlanta), is part visual memoir and part emotional x-ray—a project rooted in finding light, humor, and color in the mundane. Having survived much, Dennis has made pictures through it all, using photography as a kind of recovery hymn. He speaks on art as healing, vision as survival, and the long arc of becoming whole.In This EpisodeDennis’ websiteBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-trauma-therapist--5739761/support.You can learn more about what I do here:The Trauma Therapist Newsletter: celebrates the people and voices in the mental health profession. And it's free! Check it out here: https://bit.ly/4jGBeSa———If you’d like to support The Trauma Therapist Podcast and the work I do you can do that here with a monthly donation of $5, $7, or $10: Donate to The Trauma Therapist Podcast.Click here to join my email list and receive podcast updates and other news.Thank you to our Sponsors:Incogni - Use code [traumatherapist] and get 60% off annual plans: https://incogni.com/traumatherapistJane App - use code GUY1MO at https://jane.app/book_a_demoJourney Clinical - visit https://join.journeyclinical/trauma for 1 month off your membershipTherapy Wisdom - https://therapywisdom.com/jan/
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The Strength To Move Through with Will Monlux
Will Monlux lives with stage 4 cancer, but his story is defined by more than a diagnosis. It’s shaped by the people and communities who stood beside him, the moments of connection that gave him strength, and the belief that meaning can be found even in life’s most uncertain chapters.As Chief Advocacy Officer at WondrLink, he works to help patients with life-threatening illnesses access potentially life-saving treatments through compassionate use, clinical trials, and other pathways often overlooked when standard care runs out—pathways that he knows firsthand can make all the difference.He also helps lead WondrVoices, a nationwide project that delivers handwritten cards, drawings, and messages of encouragement to people facing cancer. Each contribution becomes part of an online gallery, preserving the many voices and stories that make up the cancer experience and building a community of support.At the heart of his work is a commitment to fostering agency, connection, and hope.In This EpisodeWondrLinkWilltoendureBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-trauma-therapist--5739761/support.You can learn more about what I do here:The Trauma Therapist Newsletter: celebrates the people and voices in the mental health profession. And it's free! Check it out here: https://bit.ly/4jGBeSa———If you’d like to support The Trauma Therapist Podcast and the work I do you can do that here with a monthly donation of $5, $7, or $10: Donate to The Trauma Therapist Podcast.Click here to join my email list and receive podcast updates and other news.Thank you to our Sponsors:Incogni - Use code [traumatherapist] and get 60% off annual plans: https://incogni.com/traumatherapistJane App - use code GUY1MO at https://jane.app/book_a_demoJourney Clinical - visit https://join.journeyclinical/trauma for 1 month off your membershipTherapy Wisdom - https://therapywisdom.com/jan/
The Trauma Therapist Podcast is about the human spirit. Join host Guy Macpherson, PhD, as he talks with thought leaders in trauma, mindfulness, addiction, and yoga.Hear the personal stories and insights of passionate professionals who dedicate their lives to helping others heal from trauma.Some guests pay a fee for sponsored appearances, which helps support production of the show. All paid segments are clearly disclosed.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-trauma-therapist--5739761/support.