19. Reclaiming interdependence with Dr. Julia Mackaronis

Menders: Lead from Within with Dr. Nicola De Paul

In this episode of Menders, Dr. Julia Mackaronis, a licensed clinical psychologist and the lead mental health clinician for the Quinault Indian Nation, shares her experiences learning to acknowledge the reality of the blind spots inherent within her cultural frame as a white Western psychologist.
We explore the process of learning to be in a good relationship with each other as we foster a community of caring. And, Julia shares how she has learned to understand the concept of interdependence while working within her local indigenous community and her global community.

Listen to find out:

• How she has learned to value welcoming as a critical step in the healing process!
• How she is currently working to practice cultural humility, recognize and respond to her internalized racism and the ongoing harm of settler colonialism, and stay focused on relationship-building.
• And why she believes it is time for clinicians to focus on self-care (but not for the sake of being a more efficient or resilient clinician)!

This episode will get you wondering about your own cultural assumptions and thinking about how caring for yourself might be a radical act of compassion for our planet.

It’s time to recognize the beauty and freedom of our interdependence.
Additional Resources:
Wilfred Bion - Notes on Memory and Desire

Arthur W. Blume – A new psychology based on community, equality, and care of the earth: an indigenous American perspective
Lisa Grayshield, Washo Mihecoby, & Anita Mihecoby – Indigenous ways of knowing as a philosophical base for the promotion of peace and justice in counseling education and psychology

Leticia Nieto et al. – Beyond Inclusion Beyond Empowerment: A developmental strategy to liberate everyone