What Is Intergenerational Trauma? The Stories We Carry Before They Become Our Own

Many of us grow up carrying stories that began long before we were born. Stories of sacrifice, resilience, survival, and love. Yet alongside these stories can exist patterns of guilt, perfectionism, emotional caretaking, and self-abandonment that quietly shape how we move through the world. This article explores intergenerational trauma through the lens of immigrant family experiences, inviting readers to understand the inherited patterns they carry and consider what it might mean to heal, reclaim choice, and return to themselves.