HOW THE APA'S EMBRACE OF CRITICAL RACE THEORY HURTS VULNERABLE PEOPLE: A THREAD. The screenshot is from a psychologist's IG acct with many followers and blue check. It takes different negative emotional states and provides an explanation thru the lens of CRT. Let's examine. 1/x

1st, why does it matter? Understanding and managing one's emotional states is important. It is *crucially* important for people with trauma, mental illness, or other issues that tend to put them in therapists' offices. It is an entirely normal response to many types of abuse 2/x

and other trauma for the victim to blame her/himself. Learning to refuse to accept blame where it's not warranted while simultaneously accepting personal responsibility for one's own feelings and reactions is the key to healing and health. Here's a general example: suppose 3/x

a guest to your home defecated on your living room floor, then fled. Your fault? Your disgusting action? No. Your responsibility to clean up? Yes. You have two choices: clean it up or live in a house with a pile of shit on the floor. A more specific example: someone who is, 4/x

as a child, abused by adults has no culpability. They are not guilty and feeling guilty or ashamed, while normal, is inappropriate. A good therapist helps them release the inappropriate emotions of shame and guilt for what they could not control. Often the reaction to child 5/x

abuse, in the victim, involves complicated defense mechanisms: becoming irrationally afraid of certain types of people or situations and overprotecting themselves; taking inappropriate risks bc they feel they're worthless/not worth protecting, or even both at once. The states 6/x

of emotion that lead to these unhelpful and unhealthy behaviors might not be the victim's FAULT--they were caused by the bad behavior of others--but they are absolutely the victim's *responsibility* to learn to change. Doing this work may be unfair, just like having to clean 7/x

a pile of someone else's shit from your house, but again--two choices. If you want your life (house) to be a pleasant place to live, you must be responsible for it yourself. Now look at this screenshot again. Good therapy involves challenge of your assumptions and being 8/x

pushed to understand yourself, your emotions, your behaviors, so you can take responsibility to change them. It is similar to Physical Therapy in that regard. Rehabbing an injury is painful and difficult, but it's how you heal and get strong. CRT in this framework is an 9/x

absolutely crippling paradigm. You're anxious? No need to rationally reflect on why, examine how reasonable your fear is, learn to laugh at yourself if it's irrational. You're a victim of gatekeeping! You're depressed? No need to understand why, change what is in your power 10/x

to change (which, BTW, is a lot--exercise, diet, sleep, reducing controllable stressors, etc.). Instead, focus on ancestral trauma. You are a victim of things that happened before you were born! How can your personal pursuit of happiness not going so well be your fault? 11/x

This mindset is incredibly dangerous. What survivors of trauma (I am one, diagnosed with C-PTSD) need is empowerment. Focusing on the immutable past and the bad actions of others above learning the skills of self-ownership is CRIPPLING. Imagine a physical therapist who, 12/x

instead of pushing you to do 5 more reps each time as you strengthened your injured knee, instead spent each session showing you your x-rays and MRIs and helping you deeply and profoundly understand in detail how screwed up your knee is. That might be a very good thing for 13/x

the start of *first* session, but then it's time to get to work! This model is the least kind and compassionate model imaginable for trauma survivors. It is using the considerable power differential of a therapeutic relationship to cripple the patient for life. It is evil. /end

Few DMs asking for reading suggestions. The Choice by Edith Eger (a trauma therapist who spent a year as a prisoner in Auschwitz) is my top recommendation. https://www.amazon.com/Choice-Dr-Edith-Eva-Eger/dp/1501130781