Workplace trauma is real trauma, especially when racism, anti-LGBTQ bias, and institutional betrayal are part of the job. In Episode 34 of the Revolutionary Social Work Podcast, Alicia Stettler and Causha Spellman-Timmons host a grounded, practical conversation with Heliana Ramirez, PhD, LISW on toxic workplaces, psychological safety, culturally affirming crisis response, and what it takes to stay bold in advocacy without losing yourself.

Ace was taking a burnout break from podcasting, and Alicia and Causha held it down.

Website: RevolutionarySocialWork.com

Connect / collaborate: castettler@alaska.edu

Guest Links

Website: https://www.workplacetraumarecovery.com/

Provider page: https://care.headway.co/providers/heliana-ramirez

About Heliana Ramirez, PhD, LISW

Heliana Ramirez is a clinical social worker and researcher focused on the trauma of toxic workplaces, including workplace racism and anti-LGBTQ bias. During her own recovery from a toxic workplace, she recognized how unprepared many mental health providers are to address the specific injuries of workplace abuse and institutional betrayal. Drawing on post-traumatic growth and peer support, she developed communal resources to reduce isolation and strengthen recovery, including culturally informed somatic interventions, career-protection tools, a self-help workbook, blog posts, and on-demand webinars for survivors and the clinicians and advocates who support them. Her work spans anti-racist and LGBTQ+ affirming workforce wellness, occupational psychosocial safety, culturally responsive suicide prevention, somatic trauma therapy, harm reduction, and liberatory community building.

Episode Focus

Workplace trauma • institutional betrayal • psychological safety • suicide prevention • culturally affirming crisis response • social work advocacy inside institutions • middle management pressure • somatic recovery • community support

Chapters

00:00 – Theme song + intro

01:50 – Introduction and Guest Introduction

07:38 – Exploring Workplace Trauma and Healing

13:09 – The Neuroscience of Trauma and Institutional Betrayal

18:54 – Navigating Middle Management Challenges

21:23 – Social Work's Role in Addressing Global Issues

28:49 – Overcoming Fear in Advocacy

31:45 – Living with Fear and Ancestral Trauma

37:26 – Workplace Trauma and the Me Too Movement

40:55 – Navigating Financial Abuse in the Workplace

49:05 – Understanding Workplace Abuse Dynamics

55:45 – The Intersection of Childhood Trauma and Workplace

Abuse

59:12 – Gathering for Change: The Waves of Consciousness

Summit

01:01:27 – Addressing the Suicide Crisis: A Call to Action

01:07:59 – Crisis Intervention: Rethinking Our Approach

01:13:24 – Cultural Healing: The Role of Community in Suicide

Prevention

01:19:33 – Boldness in Advocacy: The Future of Social Work#WorkplaceTrauma #ToxicWorkplace #InstitutionalBetrayal #PsychologicalSafety #SocialWork #RevolutionarySocialWork #TraumaRecovery #SomaticTherapy #SuicidePrevention #LGBTQAffirming #WorkplaceRacism #MentalHealth #WorkplaceAbuse #CrisisIntervention #CommunityHealing

© Revolutionary Social Work

AI is reshaping social work, education, and everyday life fast. In episode 33 of the Revolutionary Social Work Podcast, Ace and Alicia talk through what this shift means for purpose, identity, mental health, and community, and how to lead with heart while staying grounded and ethically clear.

If you’ve felt the tension between technology and humanity, this one is for you.

Website: RevolutionarySocialWork.com

Email (connect + collaborate): castettler@alaska.edu

Chapters

00:00 Theme Song + Intro

00:43 Introduction and Check-In

01:55 The Impact of AI on Social Work

03:31 Purpose and Identity in a Changing World

08:38 Youth Connection and Social Interaction

16:29 Navigating Technology and Social Media

23:12 Adapting to AI in Education

25:50 Conclusion and Future Directions

About Ace (Christian “Ace” Stettler)Professor Ace is a professor of social work, writer, and creator based on Hawai'i Island. He is the founder of Revolutionary Social Work, a framework centered on deep self-reflection, relational practice, and becoming more fully human. Ace hosts the Revolutionary Social Work Podcast and The Critical Social Worker: A Revolutionary Storytelling Podcast, creating conversations that challenge conformity in the profession and call people back to connection, conscience, and kinship.

About Alicia Stettler, LCSW, CYTAlicia Stettler is a Revolutionary Social Worker, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified Yoga Teacher, and guide for those seeking deeper healing, health, and happiness. With over a decade in mental health, her integrative approach blends evidence-based clinical practices with yogic philosophy to support personal and collective transformation.Alicia created the Circle of Self, a framework for lasting healing through (re)connection to seven essential elements: Movement, Stillness, Nature, Community, Spirit, Nourishment, and Love. She teaches that we must nurture our own Circle in order to share it with others.

Join the conversation:

What part of the AI shift feels most real in your work or life right now, and what helps you stay grounded?

#RevolutionarySocialWork #SocialWork #AI#SocialWorkPodcast #EthicalAI #MentalHealth #Purpose #Identity #Community #Connection #FutureOfWork #SocialWorkEducation #Healing #CircleOfSelf #RelationalPractice #EmbodiedHealing

© Revolutionary Social Work

Alan Dettlaff (upEND Movement) joins Ace + Alicia for a direct conversation on abolitionist social work, ending the family policing system, and reclaiming social work from professionalized compliance. We get into electoral politics, the profession’s silence on genocide, desensitization and empathy, organizing for community, and practical action like economic boycotts and finding clearer information in a saturated media landscape.

Connect + collaborate (we actually read these): RevolutionarySocialWork@gmail.com

Website: RevolutionarySocialWork.com

Explore Alan’s work:upEND Movement: https://upendmovement.org/Alan Dettlaff: https://www.alandettlaff.com/

About Alan Dettlaff:Alan began his career in the family policing system as an investigative caseworker and administrator. He later helped create the upEND Movement (2020) to abolish the family policing system and build healing-centered alternatives. He’s the author of Confronting the Racist Legacy of the American Child Welfare System: The Case for Abolition (Oxford University Press, 2023), co-editor of Social Work, White Supremacy, and Racial Justice (OUP, 2023), and co-founding editor of Abolitionist Perspectives in Social Work (open-access, peer-reviewed).

Topics in this episode include: abolitionism, family policing, child welfare, social work education, solidarity, community building, media saturation, boycotts, and revolutionary social work.

Chapters

00:00 Theme song + intro

02:40 Introduction to Revolutionary Social Work

03:49 Alan Dettlaff’s Background and Abolitionist Work

06:17 The Impact of Angela Davis on Activism

08:17 Distraction Tactics of Oppressors

10:36 The Limitations of Electoral Politics

13:44 Critique of the Democratic Party

15:14 Disappointment in Social Work Organizations

18:08 The Silence of Social Work on Genocide

21:54 The Performative Nature of Social Work

25:06 Desensitization to Global Issues

27:25 The Need for Political Education

30:25 Authenticity vs. Fear in Activism

32:46 Addressing Global Genocides

34:44 Revolutionizing Social Work

37:32 Reclaiming the Term “Social Work”

41:37 Reclaiming Social Work: A Complex Identity

47:31 The Role of Education in Social Work

51:18 Abolitionist Ideas in Social Work

56:12 Collective Action and Political Engagement

01:02:41 Building Community and Connection

01:05:59 Navigating Information Overload

01:15:25 Towards Liberation: A Call to Action

#RevolutionarySocialWork #AbolitionistSocialWork #upENDMovement© Revolutionary Social Work