About this episode

Susan Carson discusses her spiritual journey and the church's approach to trauma and healing.

E188 | Susan Carson | Safe Enough to Heal: Why the Church Gets Trauma Wrong and What to Do Instead Welcome to the Face to Face podcast and episode 188 with spiritual director and author Susan Carson. Susan tells her story of meeting Jesus at 18, later experiencing spiritual trauma, and moving into a contemplative path of prayer and inner healing. We talk about how neuroscience, Christian mystics (especially Julian of Norwich), and the biblical idea of kenosis (Philippians 2) come together in her "safe space" approach—noise-free, shame-free, and formula-free—focused on embodied, face-to-face connection. We discuss how church environments can be unsafe and harmful, why healing is low-and-slow rather than a quick fix, what it cost Susan relationally (including LGBTQIA+ convictions), and her new book releasing May 5, with more at susancarson.net. Instagram: @susancarsonauthor YouTube: @SusanCarson Substack: @susancarsonauthor 00:00 Podcast Welcome 00:29 Episode Intro and Summer Plans 02:38 Meet Susan Carson 05:04 Her Spiritual Journey 08:17 Mystics Meet Neuroscience 12:29 Kenosis and Healing Space 16:14 Good News After Deconstruction 23:10 Church Safety and Trauma 25:47 Book…

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