It was during the armed conflict in 2011 when a group of fighters found Dr. Reda in a tent caring for trauma surviving children in Libya. The fighters indicated that Dr. Reda was needed on the frontlines of the fighting. Dr. Reda let them know that attending to the psychosocial needs of the children in the tent was indeed his frontline.

After 12 years in exile, Dr. Reda was able to return to Libya. While the Libyan people’s physical wounds were prevalent, their psychological trauma often went unnoticed. Due to the stigma and lack of education, mental health is not typically a focus in Libya. Trauma survivors needed psychosocial care. Dr. Reda found that traumas experienced by refugees are similar to the dysfunctional cycles and family dynamics of trauma survivors in general. Receiving his master’s degree from Harvard University in Refugee and Global Mental Health after completing medical school in Libya and while undergoing extensive training with the University of Tennessee, Dr. Omar Reda is now a board-certified psychiatrist practicing at the Providence Healthcare System. Dr. Reda is a leading expert in Psychotraumatology and Trauma-Informed Care as well as the mental health of Muslims, immigrants and refugees, the Libyan revolution, and the Arab Spring, and is the author of several books and a highly sought-after dynamic public speaker.

Living in Portland, Oregon with his wife and three daughters, Dr. Reda’s passion for healing focuses on tackling the family dysfunction and youth vulnerability resulting from trauma.

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