TAMPA, Fla. — Matthias Barker is a psychotherapist who also happens to be a TikTok personality.
Barker was the keynote speaker at the Florida Behavioral Health Conference in Orlando. ABC Action News asked him how we can repair what’s stressing us out right now.
“By moving towards the thing that's painful—and the thing that's painful only hurts because it matters to you,” explained Barker.
Barker is also a trauma specialist. He said trauma can appear in many physical ways years after it happens.
“So that could be in nightmares. That could be in somatic pain and just that pain in my neck or in my back or my chest,” said Barker. "We need to do something with it. My answer to that is that you need to witness it and share it, particularly share it with someone that you love, someone that you trust."
Then healing comes when that person acknowledges that whatever happened to you never should have happened.
“Then I can look at you and be like, 'Listen to you. You're not worthless,'" said Barker. "That actually has a reparative healing effect on the heart."
Barker has his own mental health service online. He offers workshops for people who may not have access to counseling or don’t want to go.
Some of his workshops focus on parenting, couples, anxiety, and healing.
Barker is also popular on TikTok, posting a variety of videos from how to get through trauma to how to talk to your kids.
You can learn more about Matthias Barker and his work here.