Those who have been affected by trauma are the people who truly understand the extent of the big emotions that come with trauma. It’s refreshing when someone uses their background of self-doubt and shame to help others heal. Such is the story of today’s amazing guest, so join us to learn more!

Rayah Dickerson hosts the podcast, Depth of Echoes, which is a mental health podcast that is a wonderful resource for the mental health community. Rayah is the anxious, semi-depressed wife of a guy with schizoaffective PTSD, and she’s a trauma-informed mom, ally, researcher, writer, activist, and national speaker. I was privileged to be on her show this week as Rayah interviewed me; now I’m returning the favor. She was recently diagnosed with ADHD, which is a common experience for many creatives.

Show Highlights:

• How Rayah is intensely passionate about learning, evolving, and finding the best ways to heal from the trauma that we face every day
• Rayah’s husband’s mental crisis which happened 3-4 years ago and awakened Rayah to a huge need
• Rayah’s personal brand of intensity, which is shown in love as she figures out how to heal each person
• Rayah’s recent ADHD diagnosis and how it manifests itself
• The common thread through many people with ADHD and how they can help each other
• The importance of using a planner
• How Rayah’s experiences in childhood created a lot of internal shame, manifested in sarcasm and making her afraid to get help
• How Rayah was affected by her religious background, which included many rules for women
• The shame Rayah felt when she was told to calm down and be likable and pleasant
• How Rayah’s intensity is out of control in dealing with her oldest son, who also has experienced trauma
• How Rayah shares with people around her and tries to utilize the benefits of community
• How to learn useful coping techniques from people in marginalized communities
• Rayah’s personal habits that help her deal with her intensity
• The best advice Rayah received was from a nurse who told her to be an advocate in the mental health community to help others
• Books that helped Rayah: Surviving Schizophrenia by E. Fuller Torrey MD, The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk MD, and True Inclusion by Brandan Robertson
• How Rayah helps others by giving them permission to talk about their issues
• How Rayah helps people see that life with mental illness can still be beautiful
• Parting words from Rayah: “You can change your internal dialogue, improve, and heal.”

Resources:

Depth Of Echoes 

Find Rayah and Depth of Echoes on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Patreon, and YouTube