LEE SHERMIN

Is Mental Illness a Symptom of Trauma? Is Mental Illness a Symptom of Trauma? This question cuts straight to the heart of a growing debate in psychiatry, trauma healing, and modern healthcare. Let's unpack it gently and clearly: 🧠 Is Mental Illness a Symptom of Trauma? Often, yes. Many mental health issues—especially depression, anxiety, dissociation, self-harm, even psychosis—can be responses to trauma . That trauma might be: Acute: violence, abuse, disaster Chronic: emotional neglect, poverty, racism, growing up feeling unsafe Intergenerational or systemic: colonisation, war, patriarchy, etc. These are not simply “disorders” but adaptive survival responses to unbearable environments. 🌀 What looks like 'madness' might actually be a wound , not a disease. 🔬 So Why Do We Still Treat It Like a Disease? Because the medical system was built on control, classification, and standardisation. ...

You Were Never Meant to Forget: The Bastardisation of Birth – Part 1 You Were Never Meant to Forget: The Bastardisation of Birth – Part 1 Before the advent of hospitals, sterilized rooms, and surgical lights, birth was an act of community. It was messy, sacred, loud, instinctive—and led almost entirely by women. Midwives were not rare or radical. They were essential. They carried the wisdom of generations in their hands—passed on through practice, stories, and presence. Most births happened at home, surrounded by the familiar: women who knew your body, your story, your strength. There were no heart monitors or epidurals. But there was rhythm. There was breath. There were whispered prayers and strong arms. And above all, there was trust. Birth was not feared; it was honored. Women bled and screamed and held each other through it. Women Held the Knowledge Childbirth belonged to women. It was their domain, passed from mother to daughter, sis...

You Were Never Meant to Forget: The Bastardisation of Birth You Were Never Meant to Forget: The Bastardisation of Birth Birth has always been a profoundly female-centered event. Before modern medicine, childbirth was attended and supported almost exclusively by women—midwives, doulas, sisters, mothers, neighbors—who shared knowledge, care, and wisdom passed down through generations. Were All Women Midwives or Doulas Before Modern Medicine? Not every woman was a midwife or doula, but in many traditional societies, childbirth was surrounded by women who provided support and care. Midwives were skilled birth attendants, often respected members of their communities. Doulas, though not named as such historically, existed as women who gave emotional and physical support during labor. Women were central to birth because men were usually excluded from the birthing space. It was a communal, women-led experience, with specialized knowledge residing in ...

Inherited Silence: The Wisdom They Tried to Erase We inherited silence, not because we chose it, but because our ancestors had to. Inherited Silence: The Wisdom They Tried to Erase Ancient spiritual teachings were not merely belief systems — they were embodied ways of being, steeped in reverence for life, mystery, and connection. Over time, many of these teachings were fragmented, misinterpreted, or erased entirely. What follows is not exhaustive, but a remembering. 1. Unity with Nature Humans once lived in harmony with the natural world. Trees were teachers, rivers held memory, and animals were kin. Nature wasn’t a backdrop — it was spirit, alive and speaking. 2. The Divine Feminine The feminine principle — creation, intuition, rhythm, and rest — was once revered. The womb was a portal, not a problem. Our modern world has shamed, silenced, and sterilised this power. 3. Energy & Vibration Before science could measure energy, the ancient...

Inherited Silence: The Wisdom They Tried to Erase We inherited silence, not because we chose it, but because our ancestors had to. Inherited Silence: The Wisdom They Tried to Erase What do we know about ancient spiritual teachings that we have forgotten or bastardised? The truth is, a great deal — but it's been buried, distorted, or deliberately erased. Many ancient teachings weren’t lost — they were taken. Rewritten. Misused. Or made so alien we no longer recognized their beauty. So how and why did this happen? 1. Empire & Control Kill the story, control the people. Empires and colonisers systematically silenced indigenous spiritual systems to replace them with ones aligned with conquest. They: Banned rituals and languages Burned sacred texts and tore down altars Framed local deities and practices as evil or primitive 2. Patriarchy Silence the feminine, and you silence the wild. Many ...