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Hi! I'm Silvana.

Decolonization and liberation coach for mental health professionals and service providers

I help clinicians, healers, and coaches incorporate decolonized and liberatory values in their practices so that you can have a practice and/or service-based business that is truly affirming and welcoming to clients who hold marginalized identities.

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Featured Post

Modelling... hopelessness?

Reader, I can’t wait to have some time off in June. I am not going on vacation though; I honestly prefer to hibernate at home -independently of the season- in a low stimuli environment to recalibrate my nervous system. This year I did not plan this time off well ahead of time because, well, this year has not been business as usual (for all of us). To be honest, this year I have had to work extra hard on my self-care, extra hard on my liberatory and spiritual practice. I questioned harder the...

4 days ago • 2 min read

Reader, Q (from a therapist): I'm wondering how therapists who are decolonizing their practices are shifting from diagnosis and documenting things in an intake note or treatment plan where the diagnosis would typically go... the tools I have in my EHR are not set up for this and need to be reimagined but for the time being while using the system of an EHR with an intake note of a biopsychosocial assessment and history of symptoms with a diagnosis summing it up, and then the diagnosis leading...

18 days ago • 2 min read

Reader, Q: How do we continue to show up for our clients knowing we are a part of a system that continuously harms and further marginalizes them? A: By understanding that while we operate within an oppressive system, we are not part of an oppressive system, but we are actively resisting from within. By understanding that if we operate within this oppressive system it is not because we believe in it, but because it is the best we can do now, until we have more resources (time, money, energy)...

25 days ago • 2 min read

Reader, Never forget that we all have some internalized oppression to unlearn. Liberation work is communal work. True healing (in mental health, in coaching, or in any other service based business) means connecting with the people you serve, it does not mean providing them band-aid treatments. If you want to decolonize your practice, you have to begin by decolonizing yourself (decolonizing yourself is decolonizing your practice). Healing from burnout is also decolonial work. Working within...

about 1 month ago • 1 min read

Reader, Last week I shared with you my reasons to slow down. And I asked you to share some of your reasons as well. Thanks for doing so! These are the reasons you shared with me (and I’m sharing them with all for major inspiration). You are: Not scheduling any new guests for your podcasts and publishing less often to have more time Swimming to decolonize your schedule Focusing on what feeds you rather than focusing on efficiency Blocking off more time for yourself Responding more slowly to...

about 1 month ago • 1 min read

Reader, I am gonna be transparent with you. I have several reasons why I have chosen to slow down lately. I have experienced several losses in the last year (I am talking about the whole continuum of losing friendships, abilities, places, beliefs, expectations, identities, ways of thinking, values, etc., AND the anticipatory grief of losing loved ones). It’s all been slow and subtle, but it’s been there as a constant in my life. Why do I share this with you? Because I know I’m not alone in my...

about 2 months ago • 1 min read

Reader, How are you doing? No, seriously, how are you coping with a world upside down while supporting your clients while taking care of yourself while trying your best to fight oppression? Nowadays, coping looks like reading and playing card games with my kid. It also looks like figuring out the type of repair my nervous system can handle when someone caused a rupture in our relationship. Coping also looks like allowing the grief (of what I continue to unlearn and let go of) to take over to...

2 months ago • 1 min read

Reader, Last week I hosted two webinars: one on Tuesday for BIPoC clinicians and another on Wednesday for white-identified clinicians. And here are some reflections from the two meetings: The purpose of offering separate webinars is to have affinity groups, assuming that they foster a sense of safety. However, it is clear to me that internalized oppression (thanks, white supremacy) can make us hurt even people within our communities. Generally, calling in (educating someone when they say...

2 months ago • 1 min read

Reader, Here's another supervision-y question that feels very relevant when you want to practice in an anti-oppressive, liberatory, and/or politicized way... Q: “How do you work with parents/caregivers of teen clients whose values, beliefs, etc. do not align (at all) with yours? … I personally am feeling uncomfortable because the client’s caregiver has harmful beliefs about identities and experiences that I have. Do I need to try to put my own feelings aside and stay aligned with the client’s...

3 months ago • 2 min read

Reader, I found this email in my spam folder a couple of days ago and it got me thinking… ...I have a favour to ask you. Can you use your privilege to call in people like the one in the email? I know that unfortunately you have someone like this in your circle— a coworker, a friend, or a friend of a friend maybe. And while it would be very easy to shame them publicly, I choose the route of calling them in, as long as my minoritised identities are not being harmed (this one here I am not...

3 months ago • 1 min read
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