Today’s guest defines trauma as something that impacts your ability to cope in everyday life. Trauma can also affect multiple generations and start a cycle that is difficult to escape.
Cordelia Cranshaw Skeete has experienced this cycle of generational trauma. As a former foster youth, she experienced the deep trauma of multiple transitions, the loss of connection to biological family, and other traumatic events. But through all the struggles she experienced, she was able to find beauty too.
Cordelia is a former foster youth, foster system advocate, coach, author, speaker, former Miss District of Columbia USA 2019, founder of Acts of Random Kindness (a nonprofit that provides resources to children and families facing life challenges), and Licensed Graduate Social Worker. Her greatest passion is to bring healing to children and families who have experienced trauma.
This was such a special conversation. I hope you are as encouraged as I was by Cordelia’s willingness to share her story and her powerful perspective on generational trauma. She is a cycle-breaker!
TAKEAWAYS FROM TODAY’S CONVERSATION:
1. Multiple transitions can affect a child’s core beliefs.
Transitions like entering foster care, moving to a new placement home, or experiencing a life-shaking event, are traumatic. Those transition can also shake our core beliefs about ourselves, God, and the world around us. It’s important when that happens to have people who can push back on the lies being repeated in our minds and speak truth into our lives.
“It felt like no one wanted me and that I wasn’t important and that I didn’t have value.”
2. The purpose of a foster parent is not to replace a biological parent.
Children who are entering foster care have just been removed from everything they know. They still need the things that a parent would provide; however, they are not looking for a replacement for their biological parents. It’s important that we carefully nurture and support a child, caring for the connections they have with their biological family in whatever ways we can.
“Those who are experiencing the foster care system are not looking for replacements of their parents.”
3. We can be cycle-breakers.
Generational cycles of trauma are so real and can have a huge impact on our lives, but they can be broken. With the right tools, we can break the cycle and start a new legacy. We have the ability to give future generations a different legacy from the one we experienced. We can be cycle-breakers.
“Cycles of generational trauma run deep.”
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Meet Our Guest
Cordelia Cranshaw is a former foster youth, foster system advocate, coach, author, speaker, former Miss District of Columbia USA 2019, founder of Acts of Random Kindness (a nonprofit that provides resources to children and families facing life challenges), and Licensed Graduate Social Worker. Her greatest passion is to bring healing to children and families who have experienced trauma.
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