Chaos in Color: A Journey through Trauma, Healing and Forgiveness (In Person)

Chaos in Color is the captivating story of Dr. Layla Salek’s journey from childhood to adulthood with a mother who suffered from untreated bipolar disorder. Each chapter paints a vivid, heartbreaking picture of the abuse, neglect, and trauma that she experienced as she grew up at the mercy of her mother’s bipolar swings, an incompetent mental health system, and the strangers with whom she was often left. Dissipating those times of darkness were moments of love, joy, and happiness that she felt while being cared for by others in her life, inspiring her to start her own family, complete a doctorate in psychology, and work with children with mental illness and severe behavior disorders. Join us as we trace how personal and familial trauma is carried into adulthood, and how it can ultimately be released through resiliency and forgiveness. Dr. Salek will introduce us to and read from the newly-published Chaos in Color, lead an exploration of the language of trauma and resiliency through a close look at various chapters of the book, and facilitate writing exercises tailored to uncover our own relationship to the power of forgiveness, and the healing that comes from connecting to a loving community.