32. The Mind of Domestic Violence; Unpacking the Connection Between Domestic Violence and Trauma History

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The Amerikan Therapy team sits down with powerhouse Lyn Twyman to get real about domestic violence in 2020.  Lyn and standing third co-host Dr. Tonya Royster, reveal how violence and trauma are connected and often used as a common communication tool within the black community which is tied to our history of bondage and oppression.  This rich conversation will leave you taking a deeper look at your own trauma history and violence patterns. 

Lyn Twyman:  Domestic Violence and Behavioral Health Advocate, Community Policing Expert, Consultant and Author
Lyn Twyman is a national domestic violence and behavioral health advocate, survivor, activist, speaker, consultant, and author. Since 2009, Lyn has been vigorously fighting to save this generation and the next from domestic violence. Lyn has advocated for The International Violence Against Women Act and was integral in drafting domestic violence legislation in several states. She was also instrumental in the passage of the internationally historic Public Domestic Violence Registry of Guam. Lyn has met with advisors of President Obama regarding national domestic violence programming and privacy protection for crime victims. She also serves on several committees including The State of Maryland Governor’s Office of Community Initiatives Interfaith Domestic Violence Coalition and was the Chair of the Civil Unrest Work Group, Social Determinants Committee serving Maryland State Senator Shirley Nathan-Pulliam. In addition, Lyn is a bi-racial American and advocates for diversity and racial harmony. She has been a featured guest on several media outlets including WJLA ABC News, WFMY CBS News, WPGC CBS Radio, CBS Radio Los Angeles, Fox News, and Michael Baisden. As a survivor of psychological child abuse and intimate partner violence, Lyn is passionate about helping those who suffer from abuse or with its traumatic effects, especially those suffering from generational and cultural trauma, and mental illness.

Stemming from her ongoing activist work nationally, as the CEO, Lyn established LASERS in 2013, which stands for Leaving Abuse Supporting Everyone Restoring Survivors, website www.wearelasers.org, a domestic violence prevention education organization. With a motto of Targeting Domestic Violence Holistically, LASERS is a national, progressive organization that addresses all forms of domestic abuse through curriculum development, group meetings, classes, special events, and referrals. To date, LASERS has served hundreds of individuals and organizations through support groups, health fairs, youth mentoring, and law enforcement officers through training.  

Lyn was also a program administrator for one of the largest police departments in the country.  She is a subject matter expert in community policing and behavioral health advocacy.  Lyn trains law enforcement in community policing and vicarious trauma.  She advocates for at-risk youth and those returning from prison, understanding that most justice-involved individuals are also victims of violence, crime, or have experienced trauma and or mental illness.  Lyn’s father was one such individual, a United States veteran who experienced incarceration connected to his own mental illness.

In October of 2016, Lyn was appointed by Maryland Governor Larry J. Hogan, Jr. to the Neshante and Chloe Davis Domestic Violence Prevention Task Force which serves the entire State of Maryland and in 2018, she was appointed to the Social Determinants of Health in Baltimore City Committee under SB444.  S

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