Displacement, Persecution, Catastrophe: Suffering in Our Family Tree
Healing for self-expression, belonging, and wellness. While making sure not to martyr yourself in the process.
Personal or Ancestral Wounds? How to Tell the Difference
Not all wounds are alike. How do you know when you need to reach beyond your lifetime and down your genetic line for healing? Here are a few tips.
Personal wounds are tied to a specific traumatic event or events in your life. For most personal wounds we can remember what happened and maybe even how it felt. Sometimes our memories of these events are repressed. When this is the case, the personal wound feels like it is unique to you and part of something that has happened in this lifetime.
Ancestral wounds have a bigger and deeper quality to them. They are often harder to explain purely through events in our lives. They can feel overwhelming or insurmountable. We notice that our relatives carry the same patterns of suffering. The wound can feel especially entrenched and hard to heal and move on from. We may experience having this pain for as long as we can remember.
Ancestral wounds set the stage for matching personal wounds. For example, when there is an ancestral wound of mental illness in a family, that wound is likely to manifest in a person’s life. They may have mental illness themselves or struggle with supporting parents or siblings who do.
Ancestral wounds stem from single pivotal events OR from repeating patterns.
Major Kinds of Ancestral Wounds
DISPLACEMENT
When our ancestors left their homeland and crossed large distances, they experienced a loss of a sense of belonging via the loss of culture, language, and community. The wound is especially deep when the displacement was forced. Wounding also happened when our ancestors left because they felt they had to leave to survive.
PERSECUTION
When our ancestors experienced religious or political persecution this can leave deep scars in the family line.
SYSTEMATIC OPPRESSION
Ancestors that were a minority gender, race, culture, and/or religion experienced the psychological and physical trauma of oppression on a grand scale by the communities and governments they lived in.
BAD ACTORS
We all have ancestors that were the perpetrators rather than the victims. These bad actors created negative karma for our family lines that limits our freedom today.
DISEASE
Disabling health issues, especially those that reoccur across generations, cause their own trauma. Disease causes suffering for those that have to endure it and for the immediate family members. These health issues can be mental, emotional, or physical and includes substance use disorder (addiction).
CATASTROPHE
War, famines, untimely deaths, fatal accidents, and natural disasters are among the major catastrophic events that can cause ancestral wounds.
There is obviously significant overlap between different types of ancestral wounds. They often feed into each other. For example, the painful feelings of loss that come from displacement can lead to mental illness.
Why We Do Ancestral Healing
To heal physical and mental illness in ourselves…
Healing an ancestral wound may be the key to your wellness or simply a component of it. Ancestral healing frees up at least a portion of your energy and spirit, which leads to a better quality of life. Even if your physical condition doesn’t shift much, your self-esteem and sense of self-worth will. Your spirit comes out stronger on the other side making whatever challenges you have left to face more manageable.
To liberate our self-expression…
Ancestral wounds tell us that it’s not safe to be ourselves. To speak up in authoritarian regimes meant torture or death. To express one’s native culture in a foreign land meant exile and persecution. There are so many reasons our ancestors were not safe to express themselves. When we heal ancestral wounds we free our inner voice.
To find belonging…
The ancestral wound of displacement undermines our sense of belonging and our ability to feel at home. When we heal this wound by reconnecting with our motherland, culture, and ancestors, we are able to finally feel at home in ourselves. This enables us to connect with other people more easily and feel belonging in the whole fabric of life.
To make amends with the past…
We all have ancestors, recent or distant, who were bad actors. This could be a generally wicked person or someone who participated wittingly or unwittingly in the systematic oppression of others. In some cases we know who our ancestors were and what they did. In many cases, we don’t. If you are a person who is plagued on a daily basis by the pain and suffering of the world, finding ways to make amends for the violence and cruelty humanity has enacted on itself and on nature can be immensely curative. You don’t need to know the details. Help where you feel called to.
To calm fears of the unknown…
When we carry trauma from catastrophes that our ancestors experienced, our nervous systems are hyper-vigilant. We expect something really bad to happen anytime with no reason. We have an irrationally large fear of injury or death. Being able to place the survival fear in our family line, and in the past, allows us to let go of fears of the unknown. Then we can show up for the life we are living.
To free future generations of the wounding…
It is possible to heal a wound or break a pattern in a single generation. However, that responsibility is a lot of pressure to put on yourself. The task can be so large that a you risk martyring yourself and sacrificing your life towards the task.
Endeavor to do what you can and help future generations do what they can.
Sometimes, despite our best efforts, it is not time for the full healing to take place. This is a co-creative process with the Divine spanning centuries or even millennia. Not all of it is in our hands. Seeing this as a collaboration with the Divine, with your ancestors, AND with the future generations invites more support for successful outcomes. Any progress made towards healing the wound is worthwhile for you and those who come after.
Shamanic Ancestral Healing Program
Every other Thursday August 28 to December 18, 2025
Connecting with the ancestors is a foundational practice in shamanism for healing, and also for support in all other ceremonial and spiritual work we do. The ancestors inform and guide our path. Relating with them is deeply comforting and soulful work. In this enlightening 4-month program, Shamanic Teacher and Spiritual Advisor, Stacey Couch facilitates five students on a journey into discovery of our personal ancestors. Through these journeys we experience the unique ways that healing takes place by collaborating and co-creating with our ancestors.
Save $120 when you register by July 28th.
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For PAID Subscribers: Creative Refuge Hour
Good news! The Creative Refuge Hour has gone so well that I’ve decided to offer it more often!
Our next meetup for PAID subscribers is July 24, 2025 at 4:30pm Mountain Daylight Time on the new moon in Leo. This is an hour set aside for a contemplation, meditation, and creative pursuits such as journaling, drawing, or collaging. I lead the first 15-20 minutes with a reading and guided meditation. You get to choose how to spend the rest of the time in a quiet creative space with a beautiful group of soul seekers. This is a fulfilling way to invest in your creative self.
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About the Author
Stacey Couch is a Spiritual Advisor who supports creative seekers learning as they go on the spiritual path. She serves beginner and life-long students of the soul. Her compassionate and collaborative approach honors the humanity and value of each person. Through meeting with Stacey, lost souls find refuge. Connection to the Divine is realized. Belonging comes. She is the author of Gracious Wild: A Shamanic Journey with Hawks. Learn about working with Stacey
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