Book Review: My Grandmother's Hands by Resmaa Menakem
As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, I often encounter clients struggling with the weight of trauma—much of it personal, but perhaps even more of it inherited. My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Resmaa Menakem offers a revelatory perspective on how trauma, particularly racialized trauma, is passed down through generations and how healing must occur in the body. In my work as a psychotherapist I often educate my clients on the nervous system and how it is affected by trauma. Menakem's wisdom in this book has helped me to further grasp the concept and use my clinical skills to bridge the gap between this emotionally charged buzz word, "generational trauma," and actual healing.
Understanding Generational Trauma
We hear this buzz phrase tossed around all the time, and it can make us feel things, BIG THINGS - like confusion, fear, panic, and even dissociation - but how much do we actually understand what it means -- as individuals and collectively?
Menakem’s introduces us to the idea that trauma is not just a personal experience but something that can be passed down through family lines, often unconsciously.
Menakem emphasizes that Black, White, and police bodies all carry different but equally significant burdens of trauma. For instance, Black bodies carry the trauma of centuries of slavery, systemic oppression, and racial violence. White bodies, too, hold generational trauma from torture practices that were the cultural norm in Europe for centuries, as well as more recently being the perpetrators and witnesses of racial violence, often compounded by the guilt and shame of this history. Police bodies embody the violence they are both exposed to and expected to enforce.
Menakem's discussion of generational trauma focused on how trauma lives in the body. While many approaches to trauma focus on the mind and emotions, Menakem draws from somatic healing techniques, showing that trauma manifests physically, altering how our bodies react to stress and safety.
Menakem goes into explaining the idea that trauma can be passed down through generations not only emotionally and behaviorally but also genetically. He draws on scientific research that suggests trauma can affect human DNA, making the case that the trauma experienced by our ancestors—whether from slavery, war, or systemic oppression—can leave a biological imprint on future generations.
Epigenetics: The Biological Mechanism Behind Generational Trauma
The study of epigenetics offers some of the most scientifically compelling evidence of how trauma can be transmitted across generations at the genetic level. Epigenetics refers to changes in gene expression that don’t involve alterations to the underlying DNA sequence but are instead influenced by environmental factors—such as trauma, stress, and nutrition. These changes can be passed down to future generations, affecting how genes are expressed in descendants.
One frequently cited study that supports this idea comes from research conducted on
the descendants of Holocaust survivors. A 2016 study by Rachel Yehuda, a neuroscientist at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, found that the children of Holocaust survivors showed distinct epigenetic markers on a gene associated with the regulation of stress hormones. These children had lower cortisol levels, which made them more susceptible to stress, a trait potentially inherited from their parents' traumatic experiences . Menakem’s discussion points to this type of evidence to highlight how trauma impacts the body and mind in lasting, measurable ways.
Another significant study connects slavery and its historical aftermath with modern-day health disparities. A 2017 review in the Annual Review of Public Health analyzed the role of racialized stress, beginning with slavery, in creating health disparities. The researchers examined how ongoing racial trauma has impacted African Americans’ vulnerability to diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and stroke, citing how stress-related hormones (e.g., cortisol) become dysregulated after generations of experiencing racial trauma.
And perhaps we are all familiar with the Famous Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Study by Kaiser Permanente and the CDC surveyed over 17,000 adults, identifying 10 types of childhood trauma (e.g., abuse, neglect, household dysfunction). It found that:
Prevalence: Two-thirds of participants had at least one ACE.
Health Impact: More ACEs increased the risk of chronic health problems (e.g., heart disease, depression).
Dose-Response: Higher ACE scores correlated with greater risk for serious health and mental issues.
The study showed how childhood trauma profoundly affects lifelong health, highlighting the need for trauma-informed care.
Trauma and DNA in the Context of Racialized Trauma
In My Grandmother’s Hands, Menakem extends the concept of epigenetics to racialized trauma, suggesting that the trauma experienced by Black bodies through slavery, segregation, and ongoing systemic racism may have left an epigenetic imprint on Black descendants. While more research is needed in this specific area, the book explores the possibility that the constant exposure to racialized stress can affect not only the individuals experiencing it but also future generations. Menakem argues that the hypervigilance, anxiety, and stress responses often seen in Black communities may have roots in this inherited trauma. The same could be said for White bodies. Menakem suggests that the guilt, shame, and unresolved fear associated with this history may also be passed down, affecting how White bodies respond to issues of race today.
Implications for Healing
Understanding that trauma can be passed down at the genetic level adds weight to Menakem’s call for somatic healing. If trauma leaves a physical imprint on our bodies and genes, then addressing trauma purely through cognitive or emotional therapies is insufficient. Healing must also involve the body, as Menakem emphasizes throughout the book, through practices like grounding, breathing, and movement.
The science of generational trauma gives us a broader understanding of the lasting effects of historical and racialized violence. Menakem’s exploration of this topic, grounded in both scientific evidence and his own experiences as a therapist, challenges us to rethink not only how trauma affects us individually but also how entire communities can be impacted over generations.
By addressing trauma at the somatic and genetic levels, we are given a pathway to not just treat the symptoms but to potentially break the cycle of trauma for future generations. My Grandmother's Hands offers a vital framework for this kind of holistic healing, combining ancient wisdom with modern science to address the complex and deeply embedded wounds of racialized trauma.
The Five Anchors: A Roadmap for Healing
Menakem provides a practical framework for healing trauma with his Five Anchors. These are tools to help individuals ground themselves and begin the healing process. They include:
Soften your body – Trauma often causes our bodies to become rigid and braced for danger. The first step is to consciously relax and soften, allowing the body to begin letting go of the physical manifestations of fear and stress.
Ground yourself – This involves connecting with the earth or other solid, stable elements. Grounding is a way to stabilize your nervous system and create a sense of safety.
Breathe – Mindful breathing can help reset the body’s stress response. Deep, intentional breaths can calm the nervous system and slow the heart rate, counteracting the effects of trauma.
Move – Movement, particularly rhythmic movement, can help to discharge the energy stored in the body from trauma. Menakem advocates for practices like shaking or dancing to release tension.
Move towards – Once we begin to heal, we can move toward others, creating new, healthier connections and relationships.
These five anchors serve as a roadmap for navigating trauma in the body. They are simple but powerful practices that can be integrated into everyday life, making healing accessible to everyone.
Harmonizing Bodies: Healing as a Collective
Another key theme in My Grandmother’s Hands is the idea of harmonizing bodies. Menakem emphasizes that healing from trauma is not just an individual process but a collective one. Trauma disrupts relationships—between races, communities, and even within families. To fully heal, we must come together and create spaces where bodies feel safe and connected.
Harmonizing bodies means finding ways for Black, White, and police bodies to engage in healing together. Menakem suggests that part of this work involves recognizing the differences in how these groups have experienced trauma while also acknowledging the shared humanity underneath. He argues that racialized trauma can only be fully healed when all bodies, regardless of race or role, come together in a spirit of reconciliation, understanding, and mutual healing. I really appreciated Menakem's wisdom on this because so often people who care deeply about anti-oppression movement often disparage police, yet it seems necessary that we need to work with police to create better public safety for all bodies.
Final Thoughts
My Grandmother’s Hands is an essential read for anyone looking to understand the intersection of racialized trauma, white fragility and somatic healing. Menakem’s approach challenges the reader to look beyond traditional therapy models, which often focus solely on the mind, and instead embrace the body as a key site of healing. His focus on generational trauma, combined with practical tools like the Five Anchors and the concept of harmonizing bodies, offers hope and a clear pathway for individuals and communities seeking to heal from centuries of trauma.
This book is a call to action for both individual and collective healing, providing tools for anyone who wishes to break the cycle of trauma and build a more just and compassionate world. Whether you are a person of color carrying the trauma of your ancestors, a white person seeking to confront inherited racial guilt, or a member of law enforcement grappling with the violence in your profession, My Grandmother’s Hands provides a profound framework for healing.
In clinical practice, the principles Menakem (pictured right) shares can be transformative. For clients dealing with chronic stress, anxiety, or symptoms of PTSD, integrating somatic practices like those outlined in the Five Anchors can complement traditional talk therapy, offering a holistic approach to healing. This book is more than a guide; it’s a tool for revolutionizing how we think about trauma, particularly racialized trauma, and how we can heal from it.
I urge anyone and everyone to please, read this book!
Sources:
DeGruy, J. (2005). Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America's Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing. Uptone Press.
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Yehuda, R., Daskalakis, N. P., Bierer, L. M., Bader, H. N., Klengel, T., Holsboer, F., & Binder, E. B. (2016). Holocaust exposure induced intergenerational effects on FKBP5 methylation. Biological Psychiatry, 80(5), 372-380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2015.08.005
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