b'INTERGENERATIONAL TRAUMAFINDING THE By Anna-Liza BadalooAUDACITY TO LIVEThrough her writing, Indigenous author Helen Knott tells her story of healing and recovering from sexual violence and addictionF ive hundred years of harmfulher poignant story of how intergenerationalKnott. Paired with sexual violence that colonial practices havetrauma and sexual violence contributed toI was exposed to at a very young age, significantly contributed toher own addiction. She is Wise spoke withthat set the stage for my own addiction to the intergenerational traumaKnott to learn how she worked throughtake place.of Indigenous communities in Canada.her trauma to get clean, and how violence Although Canadians are horrified byagainst Indigenous women is often relatedThat addiction became a coping mechanism residential school abuses and the discoveryto violence against the land. that allowed Knott to temporarily numb her of children in unmarked grave sites, thefeelings. But actually, it only added another present-day impacts of intergenerationalWith intergenerational trauma, it isnt onlylayer of trauma. My mind state didnt trauma on Indigenous women, children andthe traumas themselves that get passedallow me to fathom what sobriety and well-families are lesser known.down, explains Knott. So too do copingness could look like, Knott recalls. All of mechanisms. I also inherited what copingthose parts reinforce each other and keep In her book, In My Own Moccasins, Dane-Zaa,abilities were present within my family,you in that state of ongoing trauma and Cree and Mtis author Helen Knott shareswhich werent necessarily the best, sayssubstance use.48Spring/Summer 2022'