Payne, J. S. (2022). Out of the Fire: Healing Black Trauma Caused by Systemic Racism Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications.
As Black people, we are more likely to face a traumatic experience or suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). But being Black is about more than the violence that has been perpetrated against us. It also means living a life of dignity and self-worth. We can pull ourselves out of the fire of painful experiences and gain the psychological flexibility needed to thrive, not just survive. This book will help guide you.
In Out of the Fire, Black clinician and professor, Jennifer Shepard Payne presents culturally tailored acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) skills to help you heal from trauma, so you can live a meaningful life that is in tune with your own values. The ACT approach in this guide is empowering, strength-based, and non-pathologizing. As you read, you will come to understand that your suffering is not a sign of dysfunction, but rather a product of circumstances and your experience. Once you face the pain of trauma head on, you will discover the tools needed to feel whole.
Recovering from trauma in all its forms is something that we desperately need as Black people. Whether you are experiencing mental pain as a result of race-based trauma, or have lived through a personal traumatic experience, this book can help you take the first steps needed to heal and live the life you deserve.
Dr. Jennifer Shepard Payne is a Research Scientist and Clinician at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in the Center for Child and Family Traumatic Stress (CCFTS), and is affiliated with the Center for the Neuroscience of Social Injustice. She is also an Assistant Professor in the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry. She received her doctorate in Social Welfare from UCLA and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with many years of experience in mental health clinical practice. For several years, Dr. Payne has been working on culturally tailoring Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for African American communities. She has a private practice (DTG Counseling and Consulting) and has developed a culturally tailored ACT intervention called POOF.
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