That’s a mouthful of a title, isn’t it? There’s a reason for that.

The conversation of race, ethnicity and identity is a mouthful of a conversation, and intertwining that with the establishment and consistency in the therapeutic relationship is even more so.

It’s no secret that therapists everywhere love the term “safe space”, but what is that really and why do we as therapists rely so heavily on using that term when we are describing the nature of our work?

There is no formal definition of a safe space because it is a unique opportunity, between a client and a therapist to build that space. Generally, it is a space of complete openness, validation, comfort, and the free exploration of oneself without judgment.

Sounds beautiful right?! But in the context of the multicultural therapeutic relationship, there is so much more to building that safe space and keeping it safe.

If you find yourself entering therapy with the expectation that the safe space is already there waiting for you, to some degree that’s true, but as therapists, we cannot presume to know what makes a space or conversation feel safe to you. It is your level of open communication and the expression of where you are now, and where you want to go that allows us to didactically demonstrate and build that space WITH you.

In the multicultural sense, this means inviting race into the room. It is about sharing your experiences as BIPOC and how they have influenced where you are in your journey now, and how your perspectives help or hinder you from moving forward. It also is an indicator of if race is central to your mental health experiences, OR if it is more on the periphery with other root experiences at the core.

How to know your therapeutic relationship with your provider is safe:

• You feel comfortable. Seems logical, but it’s an easy feeling to overlook, because therapy in and of itself is not meant to be a comfortable journey, but should be comfortable in the sense that you feel heard by your provider
• You can be honest. When you can strip everything back and reveal vulnerable parts of your identity without feeling like you need to suppress cultural experiences because of fear of judgement, that is when real exploration can take place. It also provides the opportunity for real healing to begin
• You feel validated. You can feel comfortable and not feel validated. The two ideas are mutually exclusive. You may feel comfortable with your therapist, but you may not feel like they are emotionally validating your needs. Validation may take practice for you, but it should be a skill that your provider knows and practices often.

According to the American Psychological Association, in 2015, 86% of psychologists in the US workforce were white while the remaining 14% were non-white. Although these numbers are growing and more BIPOC professionals are entering the psychology field, there is still a disparity in numbers.

This makes finding a non-white provider difficult; however, we do our very best to match clients with therapists, not based on racial and cultural indicators, but on the level of care that we can give based on what you express as your current needs.

Does that mean we are ignoring preferences of BIPOC clients seeking BIPOC therapists? 

Nope! But we are considering the overall framework of what is presented to us and using that as the beginning compass of connection in the therapeutic relationship.

It is the duty of white providers to be racially and culturally informed so we can guide meaningful and productive sessions with BIPOC. It is not our duty to attempt to relate to racial experiences as normative, seemingly universally related behaviors.

As a society, we are slowly plugging into inequities in healthcare for minority and marginalized groups and as unfortunate as it may be, the pandemic really etched out just how deep the disparity gap really is.

It’s easy for us to default into stigmas being the driving force of disparity because there is plenty of data to support that there are inherent cultural opinions about mental health. But what we continue to fight is literal access to care.

Simply put, the “safe space” cannot grow where it doesn’t exist.

It is easy to throw the term around and promote that all are welcome here, but if we are not really discussing exactly HOW we are doing it, these things fall on deaf ears, because they are so easily and frequently heard.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness does a great job at explaining the importance of identifying cultural dimensions:

“Our culture, beliefs, sexual identity, values, race and language all affect how we perceive and experience mental health conditions. In fact, cultural difference can influence what treatments, coping mechanisms and supports work for us. It is therefore essential for culture and identity to be a part of the conversation as we discuss both mental health and mental health care.”

How to know you have successfully created a safe multicultural therapeutic space:

• You’re getting more than you’re giving. The hardest conversations are those where you see the potential for some important discussions, but it’s like pulling teeth to get there. When your client can freely talk with you gently guiding them through the therapeutic approach, you know they both trust and respect your connection.
• You can talk about your therapeutic relationship. We routinely check on our clients during sessions to ensure that they feel like their needs are being met, but this contextually goes beyond that. For minority groups especially, we have to invite how our race as a provider may concern your client’s ability to fully trust your connection. This ties back into being culturally informed, because historically, minority groups have been taken advantage of in the medical community. Do not withhold racial questions for fear of being offensive or taken the wrong way. Our fragility in that moment does not matter and may be holding you both back from the “AHA!” moment. Welcome the hard conversations, the one’s that truly demonstrate and acknowledge how and why race is relevant in your client’s mental health experiences and outcomes

When a mental health professional innately understands the value that cultural differences add to the mental health healing experience, the therapeutic relationship becomes a constant variable in its effectiveness to achieve outcomes that are tailored to the individual, their culturally lived experience, and their identity.

At CWCS, the safe space is the heart of our work and it’s more than just a term of acceptance. We know that the journey to healing is not linear, and you must be able to freely and safely fluctuate through that healing to find your peace. Our team continually works to be socially and culturally informed, so that we can establish a connection where you feel you can truly be who you are meant to be.