How does trauma affect children? Tracing genocide’s invisible wounds - With Dr Alexandra Chen

Third Culture Therapy

CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains several mentions of extreme violence and self-harm, particularly involving children.

While difficult to talk about and listen to, we felt it right to include these moments to illustrate the severity of the situation and the vital importance of Alexandra’s work.

In spite of these difficult conversations, we hope that the episode will leave you feeling more hopeful and provide you with a better idea as to how we should help the most vulnerable.

What are the long term effects of war on the children who suffer because of it? And what can we do to help those most in need?

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Alexandra Chen, a Hong Kong-born child psychologist and trauma specialist with over a decade of experience working with war-affected children and families across the Middle East and Africa.

Alexandra shares her deep insights into the often-overlooked, long-term impacts of conflict on children’s mental health, cognitive development, and education—drawing on her work with UN agencies, governments, and nonprofits in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, and beyond.

We delve into how Alexandra copes with the emotional weight of witnessing such profound trauma, the strategies she employs to maintain her own wellbeing, and how her diverse identities—from her Hong Kong roots to her experiences in the UK—shape her approach to helping and healing.

Join us for a conversation that explores resilience, trauma, and the enduring power of hope in the face of unimaginable adversity.

If you are directly impacted by the war in Gaza and require mental health support, follow this link to sign up for support from Healing for Gaza.

And if you want to provide support as a clinician or interpreter, or just want to donate to Healing for Gaza, all the information about how to do that can be found here.

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