Erasing Shame

“Is it a disgrace to be Born a Chinese? Didn’t God make us all!!! What right have you to bar my children out of the school because she is a chinese Decend.” These are some of the questions Mrs. Mary Tape wrote to the California Board of Education in 1885. Marie Chan, author of Mamie Takes A Stand ,  highlights a hidden figure in Asian American history: Mamie Tape. The journey of learning and shari...

Content Warning / Trigger Warning: sexual violence/rape. Midori Doumani is half Japanese and half Mexican and happy to share her heritage when directly asked. She navigates ambiguity about her perceived ethnic identity with compassion. As a kid and young adult, generationally infused shame affected her decisions. Her close-knit family dynamics and her desire to preserve the family's routine, l...

On this Erasing Shame conversation, Rev. Dr. Ken Fong explains the difference between toxic shame and healthy shame—how they're two different things. Toxic shame carries the message that there's something inherently wrong with oneself, leading individuals to either blame others or internalize the feeling and become worthless. Healthy shame, on the other hand, acknowledges mistakes and wron...

How about a cold open? That's how this conversation starts with Justin Kiley (pronounced KEE-lay), where we talk about his Filipino heritage, specifically the Igorot tribe, how that flavors his experience with shame personally, given his family and cultural background, the complexities of church hurt, and how he found a healing community and authentic connection in Portland, Oregon. Justin des...

Content Warning / Trigger Warning: bullying, suicidal ideation, suicide attempt. CW/TW. In this extended episode, Naomi Smith shows her prowess in storytelling in this conversation about how food affects brain health and how that is so important to life, walking through the challenges of being biracial, becoming a film maker, discovering the value of family history, and many more vignettes. Connec...

Gracie Joo is a 2nd generation Asian-American and daughter of a Korean pastor. She illustrates and magnifies God’s heart for specific burdens that pastors' kids are born into with stories about her upbringing. These illustrations involve and are not limited to Dollar Tree Christmases, hand-me-downs from church eonnies, car misfortunes, a gifted and personalized Lexus, and the Holy’s Spirit&#39...

Dr. Brian Licuanan is a licensed psychologist in Orange County, California, and shares about how shame, and other factors, keeps people from getting help and treatment for their mental health challenges. Plus, he reveals a reason that goes beyond shame that causes someone to resist treatment. We believe treatment can truly help someone experience a better quality of life and health, even though so...

Victoria needs your help. What is our response as we bear witness to the micro and macro sufferings in our personal lives, communities, and in the world? Where and how might Biblical lament fulfill its purpose in the modern church? How can churches be better at holding space for people grieving, processing trauma, struggling with their faith, or facing mental health challenges both short term and...

Faith Chang, author of "Peace over Perfection: Enjoying a Good God when You Feel You're Never Enough," joins Erasing Shame for a conversation about a more nuanced perspective about perfectionism, especially for Christians, how it's related to performance anxiety, and what we can do with Matthew 5:48. Show Notes at https://erasingshame.com/how-could-perfectionism-be-a-good-thing-s...

Most of us, if not all of us, have experienced pain and shame for being singled out, feeling lonely and isolated. And, some people have even survived violence, emotionally or physically; we do encourage people get help to have safety, quality of life, and renew a sense of hope through those challenges. We have a conversation with Prasanta Verma, author of "Beyond Ethnic Loneliness: The Pain o...

In 2016, high school Victoria met high school Christin. Somehow, Christin thought Victoria was cool- an adjective Victoria did not believe about herself to be true until 2024 when cool adult Christin met cool adult Victoria. Their current subjective definition of “cool” is equivalent to “weird- the good kind”. Listen to the story of how the two met during one pivotal transition period for Victoria...

Hanna Lee (Gospel Care Director at Tapestry LA Church, in Los Angeles) graciously takes us on a guided tour of their church's Restoration Center, where broken people are invited to be restored by Jesus in the whole of life, through means of care, healing, and prayer. • Show Notes at erasingshame.com/an-inside-look-at-tapestry-las-mental-health-ministry/

How does my personal background impact the way I express emotions and feelings today? How can I take care of myself while I take care of others placed within my care who are struggling with their emotional wellbeing?  Mrs. Sarah Oh, friend, Pharmacist, mother, and Biblical Counseling Seminary student, provides personal insight on the topic of emotions. Listen in as she and Victoria scratch the sur...

Isabel Tom shares about why it's extra challenging for us as Asian Americans to care for aging parents and grandparents. Isabel has worked in the field of senior care and shares so much wisdom, expertise, and practical knowledge that helps us navigate this inevitable season of life. Be sure to check out her book, "The Value of Wrinkles: A Young Perspective on How Loving the Old Will Chang...

Victoria's hot take: hustle culture is antithetical to human flourishing. Let's define hustle culture. Many people overvalue being productive and/or becoming an idealized version of themselves at the expense of their own health. As a result, people don't know how or when to rest properly. Burnout coupled with mental, physical, and emotional issues are too common. Productivity isn't...

This BTS is a behind-the-scenes conversations with Angie Cho, Executive Director of Mustard Seed Generation (MSG) http://lovemsg.org and the current webinar series with storytelling of Korean American lived experiences with mental health, in Korean and English. Sign up for the free webinar series, donate during the MSG fundraising campaign, and learn more about MSG at https://www.instagram.com/msg...

To close out season 6, our longest running season of Erasing Shame, let's introduce you to Victoria Cheng, who will be our season 7 co-host! She shares about her own mental health journey and what we can look forward to in the new season, as continue having honest and candid conversations about healthy living.

We explore the topic of perfectionism with Dr. Kenneth T. Wang (Professor of Psychology at Fuller Theological Seminary) by first understanding what it is (did you know there are 2 core dimensions?) and then how do we stop obsessing over perfectionism so we can be more humane and sane with ourselves and one another.  Show Notes at erasingshame.com/how-to-stop-our-obsession-with-perfectionism-with-d...

Listen in on this great conversation with Dr. Judy Cha about how our identity is shaped, and what pains we experience as Asian Americans, an overview of what the path to heart transformation looks like, where we can have a permanent hope that takes us through all of life's challenges, and more! And, you'll hear it here first about her brand new book, "Who You Are: Internalizing the Go...

The path of healing for those of us who have mental health challenges can sometimes be confusing with differing opinions and convictions about the best methods of treatment. The reality is that what works for one person may not work for another person. And, the powerful resources of spirituality is often ignored in secular spaces of psychotherapy. Dr. Elena E. Kim, a psychologist in New York City,...

What is it like for a Christian to work in the corporate world, and in the Silicon Valley at that? Alex Tran has been there for years and he shares from his experiences of showing up with faith at the office. Plus, you'll hear first hand about how he has started working as a life coach to help Asian Americans to experience healing, wholeness, and empowerment. Show notes at https://erasingshame...

Content Warning | Trigger Warning: Domestic Violence October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Therapist Linda Yoon talks about what's hard to talk: with family violence and intimate partner violence. Physical violence and abuse is so wrong, even criminal, but getting out to safety has extra challenges in an Asian or Asian American home. Thank you Linda for being brave to break the silence...

To tackle the mental health challenges in Asian American communities in the Chicago area, Pastor Dave Lee and Psychotherapist Irene Cho have hosted quarterly gatherings called PACT since 2018. Starting out as Pastors And Counselors Together, now it has grown into Pastors, Academicians, and Counselors Together. This is a most inspiring model for what can be easily done in other cities, regions, and...

Steve Hong of Kingdom Rice, with co-host DJ Chuang, really get into the hefty topic of shame and honor cultures, the value of our origin stories, how God reverses our shame and elevates us to a place of honor, and much more. We can't cover everything in 30 minutes, but we sure covered more about shame and honor than the average episode, with plenty of bibliographical citations sprinkled throug...

Thanks to Pastor Jin Lee (of Mustard Seed Generation and Catalyst Coalition ) for joining DJ Chuang for this lively Erasing Shame conversation; and, hosting a lunch meeting in Atlanta on Monday 8/28 for AAPI church leaders, mental health professionals, nonprofit leaders, people with lived experiences. Get Out the Prayer : please pray with us for the grant inquiry we’ve submitted for a 3-year proje...