Pamela’s presentation is called, “Birth Trauma, Medusa & Me: Soul-Healing and the Poetics of Mind”
My revolutionary presentation will dream the Medusa myth onward, by examining, “On the Medusa of Leonardo Da Vinci in the Florentine Gallery” by Percy B. Shelley, through the lens of depth psychology. My story starts in the Spring of 2018 when Medusa charted her course for me. Although I had planned every detail of the birth of my son, his cesarean delivery abolished an old way of being. From that moment on I became a new alchemical being—born in the nigredo of one of the darkest moments of my life. Albeit feeling emotionally and psychically beheaded by the process, it was looking towards the works of James Hillman, C. G. Jung, and James Hollis that brought me back to life once again. This presentation will examine my imaginal “dismemberment” by way of the poem in which I found a mirror to my pain. By reflecting on the tragedies and following the synchronicities presented to me I was led to a cure for my aching heart. I will show how following the archetypal thread that led me into the center of a serpentine goddess’ puzzle, provided me with soul-healing and the opportunity to illuminate the dark recesses of birth trauma through myth and metaphor.
About Pamela
I was born and raised in Southern California where I currently reside with my husband and children. As a child I found the Sacred at the lake near my parents’ cabin. The big pine trees surrounding it were my sacred space—my church. It was there that I began to understand that we are all part of the Divine Web of All Creation. At the age of twelve I sought comprehension of that Web by starting my study of the World’s Religions. While obtaining my B.A. from the University of Redlands, Johnston Center, I delved into Feminist Spirituality, Hinduism, Taoism and Buddhism. I moved in and out of different spiritual practices after College, weaving together the energies of all of the Archetypal-Forces with whom I entwine. In 2011 in ritual with the group I led, I heard the call: Nourish others’ understanding of their connection to the Sacred in all things! So off I went to Starr King School for the Ministry (a Unitarian Universalist Seminary) where I received my Master of Divinity, and the Chaplaincy Institute for Ordination as an Interfaith Minister. Having battled a long-time kidney illness, I almost died of an infection after completing Seminary–but found solace in finding my true path of Alchemy and Depth Psychology during this difficult ordeal. After a full recovery I began the adventure to obtain my PhD. in Depth Psychology with a specialization in Jungian & Archetypal Studies, from Pacifica Graduate Institute—where I am now dedicating my dissertation work towards designing a program for Trauma Survivors to embark on an individuation quest. I am dedicated to building bridges between communities, bringing people together to honor the sacred in all things, supporting environmental advocacy, and helping women embody all parts of their true selves.
Visit my website at www.revpameladawn.com.