In Our Blood: Intergenerational Trauma, Epigenetics, and the Path to Healing

Cedric Previtali
Apr 15
4 min read

Updated: May 8

“Even the darkest night will end, and the sun will rise.”

— Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

The Shadows We Inherit

You are born into a story that began centuries ago. A tale of survival etched into your bones, whispered through the silence of fathers who swallowed their grief, grandmothers who wore resilience like armour. Modern science now confirms what poets and elders have always known: trauma lingers. It slips into bloodlines.

But so does hope.

A landmark study at the University of Zurich found molecular scars in grandchildren whose grandmothers survived trauma. This is not metaphor. It is epigenetics—the science of how suffering etches itself into our biology. Yet Victor Hugo’s words hold: darkness does end.

Epigenetics: Stories Written in Dust

Epigenetics explores how life experiences and environments shape gene expression. Unlike genetic mutations, which rewrite DNA, epigenetic changes act like annotations in a book’s margins—highlighting, silencing, or emphasising passages. Critically, some of these marks can pass between generations.

Mice studies show traumatic stress alters chemical markers in sperm, leading to anxiety in offspring. Human research reveals similar patterns: descendants of Holocaust survivors, famine survivors, and displaced communities carry epigenetic shifts linked to ancestral pain.

One revelation cuts deepest. Women are born with all the eggs they will ever carry—even before their own birth. This means a grandmother’s trauma could imprint not just her children, but her grandchildren, as the eggs of the next generation form inside her womb. This “grandmother hypothesis” reveals how suffering echoes across time.

But here’s the hope: these marks are not permanent. They are whispers, not verdicts.

Men and the Weight of Silence

Men often learn to bury pain, to endure quietly, to provide without pause. But when trauma lives in our blood, silence becomes a cage. Many men wrestle unnamed demons, rage without cause, addiction to work or numbness, distance from those they love.

Healing begins when we stop running. When we face the shadow.

The Psychedelic Renaissance: Rewriting the Script

“Come to the edge,” he said.

“We are afraid,” they said.

“Come to the edge,” he said.

They came.

He pushed them…

And they flew.”

— Guillaume Apollinaire

A new chapter in trauma healing is unfolding. Psychedelic assisted therapy—using substances like MDMA and psilocybin—is helping people confront buried pain. Clinical trials show staggering results.

MDMA: Breaking PTSD’s Grip

Across six trials, 82% of participants with severe PTSD saw symptoms ease after MDMA therapy. The drug dissolves fear, letting patients reprocess trauma with clarity.

Psilocybin: Roots and Reconnection

Psilocybin, the compound in “magic mushrooms,” is healing wounds older than memory. Marlena Robbins, a Navajo researcher, describes how it reconnected her to ancestral wisdom: “The mushrooms showed me my grandmother’s strength. Her pain was mine, but so was her power.”

Epigenetic Shifts

Researchers now ask: can psychedelics alter inherited trauma? Dr. Rael Cahn’s team is testing this, analysing saliva samples pre and posttherapy for biochemical changes. Early signs suggest yes.

This is more than science. It is a return to ritual.

Pathways to Healing: Light Through the Cracks

Trauma may echo through generations, but so does resilience. Epigenetic marks bend to new experiences—to therapy, community, and choice. Here’s how we rewrite the story:

1. Therapy That Listens to the Body

EMDR: Uses eye movements to soften trauma’s grip on the mind.

Somatic Experiencing: Releases pain stored in the body through breath and movement.

2. Mindfulness as Rebellion

Meditation and yoga reduce cortisol, the stress hormone. They quiet the noise, letting ancestral wounds breathe.

3. Community Over Isolation

Gather. Speak. Heal. Indigenous cultures have long known: trauma festers in silence. African Ubuntu philosophy (“I am because we are”) and Māori whānau (family) circles prove connection is medicine.

4. Ritual as Repair

Light a candle. Write a letter. Dance. Rituals honour the past while reclaiming the present.

The Alchemy of Inheritance

We are bridgebuilders. We carry our ancestors’ scars, but also their resilience. Their pain may live in our blood, but so does their courage.

This is not about blame. It is about truth. When fathers grieve openly, when sons reject silence, when communities gather to heal—we dissolve old chains. We become alchemists, turning inherited pain into purpose.

As the Navajo say: “Walk in beauty.”

At True North Odyssey (TNO), we guide men through this alchemy. Our retreats in the Netherlands weave psychedelic-assisted therapy with wilderness immersion and ancestral ritual. If you’re ready to begin, click here to contact us True North Odyssey