Finding My Way Back: A Journey of Healing and Resistance

May 30

I did not enter the mental health field with ease—I fought my way in. The journey was not just about acquiring degrees, credentials, or professional titles. Initially it was about survival and a relationship with capitalism and colonialism I had to work my way through, with little guidance from institutions of learning or empathy.

With deep assistance from community it transformed to be about reclaiming what had been taken from myself and my ancestors and finding a way to exist in a system that was never meant for people like me—or for any intentionally disenfranchised identity seeking to heal.

The Weight of Silence

Growing up, I felt the weight of silence. In school, the history of the land beneath our feet and the injustices committed upon it were never discussed. At home, my father spoke of segregation and the realities of being Chicano in a place with a long, painful history of anti-Mexican violence. But these conversations were not welcomed in academic spaces. I carried an ache in my heart—a deep desire to know my culture, coupled with shame for not already knowing.

Erasure and Co-optation in Mental Health

As I moved through academia, I came to understand that this silence was not accidental. The erasure of our histories, our healing practices, and our ways of knowing was intentional. The mental health field, rooted in Western ideologies, required me to separate myself from the very things that gave me strength. I was taught that therapy must be objective, sterile, and disconnected from emotion. My ancestors had always known otherwise.

But the most painful part was realizing that this system did not just erase our knowledge—it repackaged it and sold it back to us, stripped of its depth and soul. Concepts that had been woven into our cultural practices for generations—community healing, the connection between body and spirit, the wisdom of plant medicine—were now being "rediscovered" by Western practitioners and marketed as groundbreaking. Meanwhile, we were told our ways were unscientific, unprofessional, and even unethical at the same time.

The Fear of Being My Full Self

I was taught to leave my culture at the door. To speak only perfect English, though there were no words in that language that could fully capture what I knew as susto or osco. To avoid wearing my jewelry, my curls, or anything that might make others uncomfortable—even though my clients, many of whom were Indigenous, saw these things as symbols of connection and familiarity. I was required to fit into a mold that was never made for me.

And so, by the time I left school, I was left with fear. Fear that if I openly practiced the healing traditions of my ancestors, I would be dismissed as unprofessional. Fear that if I showed up as my full self, I would be rejected. Fear that, despite all my training, I would never be seen as competent enough.

This is what I now understand as my professional susto—the collision of cultural wounding and academic indoctrination. I had been taught that personal and professional identities must remain separate. That my lived experiences, my emotions, and my own healing had no place in the therapy room. But this is a lie. A lie meant to keep us disconnected from ourselves and from each other.

Reclaiming Ancestral Healing

Through community, I reconnected with the power of ancestral healing. I learned that susto does not simply go away—it requires intentional healing, connection with the earth, and communal care. I began to integrate what had always been ours—sweeping, limpias, prayer, ceremony—not just for myself, but for those I served.

This is what led me to create Tree of Life Counseling Center and Root of It Foundation—spaces where healing is not dictated by Western standards but rooted in ancestral wisdom. Through my work in mental health rapid response, Ketamine-Assisted Therapy, and community collaboration, I am committed to making healing accessible to those who have been intentionally excluded.

I did not get here alone. I stand on the shoulders of those who came before me and those who walk beside me. This journey is not just mine—it is ours. Because healing is not about assimilation into a broken system—it is about reclaiming what was stolen and building something that truly belongs to us.

And for the first time in a long time, I am home, with the full knowledge that we rise together!

Lesson I Had to learn

The most important lesson I’ve learned along the way is that there is no such thing as decolonial work if you haven't identified the colonizer within. I had to stop and take a hard look at the belief systems and concepts I held to be true and how they were rooted in white supremacy. There were times when the colonizer within me was louder than the healer, and I had to work through that. I learned to listen to my body and continuously make choices aligned with my vision of collective liberation. This journey taught me that true healing and decolonization can only happen when we confront these internalized systems and choose to disrupt them in ourselves first.

About Tree of Life Counseling Center

Tree of Life Counseling Center is more than a therapy practice—we are a movement dedicated to decolonizing mental health and reclaiming healing for our communities. We specialize in serving BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and other intentionally disenfranchised identities, offering culturally responsive, social justice-informed therapy that challenges oppressive systems.

What sets us apart is our holistic, nontraditional to western medicine approach—we integrate mind-body healing, ancestral wisdom, and community-centered care to address trauma at its root. Our therapy is not about assimilation into Western frameworks but about rediscovering the power within ourselves and our communities. We offer Ketamine-Assisted Therapy, somatic healing, and trauma-informed practices that honor ancestral and indigenous ways of knowing.

We are also committed to empowering providers and community organizations in disrupting systems of oppression while engaging in ethical, culturally responsive healing practices. Through consultation services with Alyssa Cedillo, LPC-S, RPT-S™, IP-CST, we offer guidance on cases involving play therapy (for children and adults), sand tray therapy, crisis response, intergenerational trauma, culturally responsive care, entrepreneurship, and practice ownership.

Additionally, our team provides specialized consultation to professionals in training:

Mauricio Verduzco, LPC, focuses on men’s health, sexual wellness, toxic masculinity, Kink work, and creating clinical documentation that meets medical necessity.
Pablo Gonzalez, MD, diagnostics, psychotropic education, and Ketamine-Assisted Therapy medical director. Please note Dr. Gonzalez only works with our ketamine program and does not provide medication management services to the community through TLCC.
Mónica Rodríguez Delgado, PhD, LPC, RPT™, specializes in bilingual counseling, play therapy supervision, decolonizing academia, and supporting educators in socio-emotional learning.

Graduate Student & Provisionally Licensed Provider Program

At TLCC, graduate students and provisionally licensed providers are more than therapists—they are accomplices in dismantling systems of oppression. Guided by our mission to decolonize mental health, they expand access to care while advocating for equity and collective healing.

At Tree of Life Counseling Center, we create a space where you don’t have to leave your culture at the door. Healing is not an individual journey—it is collective liberation in action. We invite you to walk this path with us, reclaiming your strength, your story, and your ancestral connection. We were never meant to do it alone—let’s heal together.

-Alyssa Cedillo LPC-S, RPT-S