Out of the Fire: Healing Black Trauma Caused by Systemic Racism Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

by Jennifer Shepard Payne

Black Americans are disproportionately affected by trauma and historically lack access to mental health resources. In this book, Black clinician and professor, Jennifer Shepard Payne, provides culturally tailored skills grounded in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to meet the specific needs of Black readers dealing with trauma due to systemic racism, so they can live their life fully aware and in tune with their own values.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction

278 pages, Paperback

Published June 1, 2023

About the author

PhD LCSW

Reviews

[Sean Lynch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has to be one of the most heartfelt, personal books I’ve read by a behavioral health clinician. It was the author’s goal to be genuine and I’d say she achieved it. While most clinicians communicate their knowledge of a condition or an intervention with research, they do it from a distance. Dr. Shepard-Payne not only shows her mastery of the topic, she draws near to the reader. She goes beyond what most clinicians do by by demonstrating the usefulness of Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) in her own life as an example.

This book introduces the reader to ACT as an intervention that “…allows us to use our pain to get closer to what we care about and value.” Using the metaphor of fire to represent pain, the book focuses on the Black experience. If you aren’t “Black in America,” as the author says, perhaps you may or may not realize the effect of accumulated racial trauma. While the impetus for this book was George Floyd’s death in 2020 while in police custody, if you are familiar with the history of incidents like this one in American history, you know it goes way back and the pain is real.

Using plain-spoken language Dr. Shepard-Payne introduces the reader to ACT as a means of promoting psychological flexibility to move past pain in our lives. She provides easy-to-understand explanations of ACT’s six core processes and includes exercises to help the reader learn new skills. For clinicians, there is a companion guide.

While the book focuses on moving past the deep scars that racial trauma can leave, it also provides a roadmap for those who want to move past other kinds of trauma as well such as having a life threatening experience, being in combat, or being assaulted or abused. The list goes on.

If you wish to learn how to use the pain in your life to grow and learn - to be refined by it - according to the author, this book is well worth your while.

[Jamie Pennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

I lead a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy class composed primarily of people of color. I have begun incorporating some of these concepts into my class with excellent results. I highly recommend this book.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so helpful– as a counselor-in-training and just as a Black woman trying to THRIVE. As soon as I saw Jill Scott lyrics written into the framework I was sold!

[Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best ACT book that I’ve read so far. The perspective was helpful as was making the activities for therapy more culturally accessible