A Training FRAMEWORK FOR THERAPISTS
Reclaim Healing.
Redefine Practice.
Transform your practice with culturally rooted, community-driven care.
How We Serve You
Our Pathways to Service
Three pathways to deepen your practice, expand your impact, and root your work in Afrikan-centered healing.
What We Offer
Get certified in a culturally grounded framework that empowers Black therapists with Afrikan-centered methods for spiritual realignment and healing.
Book a Session
Book keynotes, workshops, or customized consultations on culturally responsive therapy, collective healing, and Ubuntu in practice.
Explore Resources
Toolkits, guides, and downloadable resources for therapists and educators seeking to infuse Ubuntu into their daily work.
The Book
Get Your Guide
What is Ubuntu Psychotherapy?
Ubuntu Psychotherapy is an approach to mental health service delivery that is grounded within
Afrikan-centered thought. It holds that the internal essence of a person is the most salient
aspect of their being and thus is the central aspect to the healing of a person. A major strength
of the Afrikan Centered ideological core was the fortification of spiritual values that allows
Afrikan people and diverse populations to be resilient in the face of adverse situations. Ubuntu
Psychotherapy is about restoring the psyche or soul of a person so that they may feel a
connectedness with themselves and those around them. It promotes healing, health and holism
through assisting people (muntu) through Remembering, Reminding, Reframing, Revitalization
and Re-Normalization within the context of their true essence.
Training and Therapy Outcomes
Spiritual Alignment
Achieve alignment of spirit with personal purpose and divine destiny
Afrikan Renormalization
Strive for cultural reconnection and authentic identity restoration
Afrikan Self-Authentification
Attain genuine self-understanding and cultural authenticity
A major function of the Ubuntu Afrikan Centered Counseling psychotherapy model is to assist Afrikan/Black people with healing from trans-generational trauma caused by the Maafa (the Great Suffering of Afrikan people) by enlivening their inner essence or spirit. Given the central role that spirit plays within Afrikan Worldview, then treatment must seek to address matters of the spirit for people of Afrikan ancestry.
This model can be applied to other populations who acknowledge the power of their internal essence.
Soul Elevation
The thrust of this model is to address the alignment of one’s spirit with one’s personal purpose. Among the Yoruba this is called Ori-Ire or alignment of head (spirit) with destiny (being). It is believed that every person comes to earth with a set of tasks to fulfill and that one’s head must be kept into alignment with their divine purpose.
The Yoruba understand as the Ancient Afrikans of Kemet (Egypt) understood that a whole and sane mind/head leads to prosperity and good health therefore the head must be kept clear of toxic thoughts or what the Zulu call ukufa kwabantu (metaphysical challenges of Black people).
The training to become a practitioner of Ubuntu Psychotherapy grounds one within the context of a culturally relevant model for healing, health and restoration of the soul.
The Role of Training for Afrikan Centered Therapist
To a varying degree, success in life results from one having a strong value system. This includes a belief in themselves, their industrious efforts, desire and motivation to achieve goals, their religious beliefs, self-respect and respect for others as well as their responsibility toward their family and community.
An Afrikan Centered therapist grounded in the Ubuntu model assumes the responsibility to remind the client (muntu) of her/his purpose and thus facilitate the spiritual realignment process through culturally appropriate therapy practices. There are a series of exercises or rituals (umsebezi) that one can employ and these training reveal the rituals that facilitate soul healing.
All umsebezi are aimed at the healing, health and holism of the inner essence of people (muntu) through assisting them through the process of Remembering, Reminding, Reframing, Revitalization and Re-Normalization.
Therapeutic Outcomes
As with all therapies this approach has some outcomes that a practitioner should be desirous of achieving. The main goal is to one return to having a feeling of wholeness and connectedness in various aspects of their lives. This is facilitated through supporting one having an experience of:
1) Increased self-love,
2) Enhanced self-understanding,
3) Greater self-efficacy,
4) Spiritual alignment,
5) Interpersonal normalization and
6) Afrikan Self “Authentification.”
7) Ubuntu – feeling of connected
Practitioner Requirements
In addition to all specialization requirements practitioners must have completed the following:
- A Master’s or Doctoral degree in a mental health or a mental health related field
- Can have a minimum of 1000 hours of postgraduate therapy experience or is internship eligible at the post graduate level in either psychology or mental health counseling
- Licensure or certification in a mental health related field or eligible to be licensed
- Malpractice Insurance ($1M per incident and $3M aggregate) or student malpratctice insurance
- Individual must be able to provide therapy independently or under the guidance of a supervisor trained in Ubuntu Psychotherapy.
Why Ubuntu Psychotherapy is Needed
The early purveyors of psychology and psychiatry had very disparaging thoughts about Afrikan/Black people. Their white supremacist ideology has negatively impacted the health and well-being of Afrikan people worldwide. Understanding this history is essential to recognizing the need for culturally grounded healing approaches.
This destructive thinking informed the entire field of behavioral sciences and continues to impact Afrikan/Black people today. A healing paradigm that takes into account the contemporary conditions and historical experiences of Afrikan Americans and other Diasporan Afrikans is imperative.
Ubuntu Wisdom
The philosophy of Ubuntu has sustained Afrikan/Black people through centuries of adversity. These words from leaders and thinkers illuminate its profound meaning.
Ready to Reclaim the Practice of Healing?
Begin your journey with Ubuntu Psychotherapy today.
Payment plans available. CEU credit offered for eligible professionals.
