We were lucky to catch up with Dr. Ruby Gibson recently and have shared our conversation below.
Dr. Ruby, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
For me, resilience comes through in 4 ways.
1) From Mother Earth and observing how she continues to adapt to events, toxins and ecological changes.
2) From a very resilient mother and family system which copes together as a unit, celebrating, thriving, problem solving and providing joyful, love-filled support.
3) From my spiritual life, and the sacred guardians of the four worlds. Ceremony and prayer are the mainstay for strength in my life, and empower me to grow, to listen to my dreams, to embolden my self in relationships as a leader of a movement toward the future of Native American wellness.
4) From my 4 amazing children and 4 beautiful grandchildren that fill me with gratitude, purpose and hope for the future.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
For many years I have been developing a body or work called Somatic Archaeology©. It is a recovery modality for healing from historical trauma. Our Native American population has been suffering for 500 years from the ethnocide and genocide of our people, culture, and homelands. With love for our indigenous relatives, in 2016 I chose to bring my work to Rapid City SD, in close proximity to Wounded Knee and the residential school sites where the government decided to put our young children in order to “kill the Indian in the child.” Our non-profit organization, named Freedom Lodge, has been providing a Historical Trauma Master Class to Tribal Members across the US and Canada for the last nine years. This training allows students to recover, but also allows each of them to take Somatic Archaeology© into their communities and provide sessions to those in need. We have impacted so many lives in a positive way through our work and trained 200+ therapists/counselors/social workers/traditional healers. We have completed 4 years of research and evaluation with an Indigenous research team, Bowman Performance Consultants; which inspired me to write my first doctoral paper highlighting our outcomes in the University of Toronto Press. Next year we will be opening our trainings to other communities that are suffering. I am excited to watch my work grow and flourish for many years!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Three qualities that help each person at the beginning of their careers are: 1. Ability to follow your heart and trust your journey. AKA Do what you love!
2. Determination. There are always challenges ahead that test your progress. AKA Don’t give up!
3. Self-Care. Your health is more important than your occupation. AKA Stay calm, breathe deeply, and rest when needed!
Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?
I personally have a strong relationship to my family and it has helped me endure the many challenges I’ve encountered. Fortunately, our family has many strengths and a diversity of skills. My mother is a beacon of light, positivity and strength for me and my four siblings. She listens objectively, advises with wisdom and love, and supports all of us in many ways. My mother has endured much with grace, compassion and fortitude,
Each family of course has different weaknesses. I certainly lived through many challenges, as my father left our family early in my childhood. With an absent father, all my siblings and I rallied around my mother and and gave her the gift of an intact and loving family.
We are as well the product of our ancestors dreams and aspirations. What skills are in your bloodline? Mine are the ability to adapt, accept, stay close to family and to rebound gracefully from life’s challenges. Consistency, love and positive support from generations of my family are the most impactful foundation from which I grew to harness and manifest my dreams.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.freedomlodge.org
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090350515927
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/mynetwork/https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090350515927
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=freedom+lodge
Image Credits
Dr. Ruby Gibson
