A Little Mixed Up: Exploring Belonging and Well-Being
Welcome to A Little Mixed Up, DLTA Integrated’s blog, where we’ll explore what belonging and well-being mean—and how to center them.
The title reflects who I am. Things in life—and in me—are rarely black and white.
Why “A Little Mixed Up”?
My coach (shout-out to Janeé Lester) once asked me whether my ability to be reflective and actionable in my learning was something I developed or something inherent.
Initially, I said I learned it. I constantly read and expose myself to new ideas, especially around social, political, economic, and organizational structures—and the psychology behind them. I often recommend books and concepts for people to explore (you’ll see that here, too).
That said, I also believe something deeper in my identity gives me an edge.
Growing Up Mixed-Race
Being “mixed up” is true for me in more ways than one. I’m mixed-race—Black and White—and grew up in the Pacific Northwest.
My appearance meant I often felt I either fit everywhere or nowhere. People would stop me on the street to speak Spanish (my Spanish was never strong enough to confidently respond beyond “hola”), or they’d try to guess what I was—Israeli, Italian, Dominican, Puerto Rican, Ethiopian, Eritrean… all incorrect.
Sometimes, I wasn’t considered “Black enough”, but I was clearly not just White. These experiences taught me many lessons—some painful, some empowering—but one that stands out is my ability to bridge cultures.
Bridging, Not Code-Switching
Growing up mixed-race in a region with rigid ideas about identity taught me to bridge—not code-switch—across professional, social, and family networks.
This coping skill helped me become more reflective about my own hooks, biases, worldview, and desire to learn from other perspectives.
It led me toward what I call a pluralistic worldview—an evolution of inclusion and diversity that pushes me to overcome pride and consider the world through multiple lenses.
This adaptability has made me culturally agile and open-minded. I’ve come to realize that for many deeply tied to a single identity, such flexibility can be very hard.
The Path of Continuous Learning
As a lifelong learner in leadership, organizational behavior, and social change, I’ve explored many works on conflict and communication. Recently, I discovered the concept of Somatics and somatic healing.
I’m not a counselor or therapist—just a curious learner beginning this journey. My goal is to explore ideas that can help individuals and organizations better contribute to our collective well-being.
I hope to share my own learning, but also to invite guest writers to share their own stories of belonging and healing.
The State of Our Social Culture
Just as I’m literally “a little mixed up,” the world feels mixed up too.
We navigate a vast landscape of perspectives, experiences, and histories. What’s true for me may not be true for you. Yet every identity deserves belonging and well-being.
Unfortunately, when belonging is hard to find, people often retreat into their ingroup, adopting limited ways of thinking–rigid worldviews–that can perpetuate intergenerational trauma, and secondary traumatic stress.
These patterns fuel trauma responses—fight, flight, freeze, or fawn—that become normalized, even celebrated. Society often confuses boundaries and free speech with embodied actions like shaming or aggression.
Healing Before Change
We know that collaboration drives social change and collective well-being. But, my theory is that we’ve been unable to be successful in many attempts, because healing must come first.
Too many of us are stuck in unresolved trauma or stress responses. Whether it’s emotional suppression or normalized emotional outbursts, our minds and bodies struggle to release what we carry.
In U.S. culture especially, generations have been taught not to feel. This emotional disconnection has produced adults who:
Don’t recognize emotions
Don’t know how to process them
Overexpose themselves to trauma through constant “doing”
The Cost of Doing Too Much
Many of us—especially those in heart-driven work—live in a state of perpetual urgency. We fight for racial, disability, gender, and environmental justice, for human and civil rights.
But in doing so, we push past our emotional and physical limits until we disconnect and burn out.
Our bodies become accustomed to high stress, leaving us unable to fully rest or recover and resulting in a weathering of our bodies, which is only exacerbated by marginalized intersectional identities shared by some.
Younger Generations and Emotional Growth
Younger generations are learning to name emotions—a beautiful start.
Yet, many are still developing the capacity to expand their window of tolerance—to process those emotions and understand diverse perspectives.
Often, that lack of tolerance manifests as:
Loudness without effective action
“Calling out” others instead of engaging meaningfully, effectively shutting down a learning opportunity
Setting unbalanced boundaries that don’t truly serve healing
Redefining Success and Moving Forward
To evolve, we must redefine what success means. It shouldn’t only represent capital or individual gain.
Instead, success should be synonymous with well-being—with interdependence and abundance.
Leaders and communities alike must recognize that healing, reflection, and collaboration are prerequisites for real systemic change.
So, we’ll take this journey together—one post at a time.
We’ll consider, learn, and grow, so that the change we need becomes woven into how we live, work, think, and heal.
