About Me

My name is Deborah Merchant.  

My deep interest in human nature began during an argument with my two older sisters over who was to blame for something. I was shocked to realize we each had different versions of what happened, each believing our version to be the truth. How could that be? I knew I wasn’t lying and knew neither of my sisters were liars. My 9-year-old brain took a while to understand this was because we were different people! Different ages, different life experiences, personalities (I didn’t know that word then), even literally different locations in time and space (yes, I did think like that even then). I found this remarkable, and my quest to comprehend the amazing magical phenomenon called humanity was born.

Years later, after several severe challenges in the family and a few traumatic experiences, I had to figure out why I survived relatively intact when my two older sisters did not. One took her own life, the other suffered terrible mental illness, and I “only” had to restore myself from deeply personal traumatic events. What governed the differences in how we were affected by trauma? What governs similarities in responses such as for PTSD? How does trauma affect a family, a community? Do the effects last beyond a lifetime, and if so, how?

Starting in my late 20s, I met my ‘tribe,’ including my husband-to-be Russ, my lifelong friend/business partner Tantra Maat (www.tantramaat.com), and several other people who became extended family. We shared a passion for supporting ourselves and others in understanding human nature beyond the definitions and conventions of modern Western society. We formed a collective called Sanctuary to facilitate this emergence, empowering people with their own awakening. We studied, engaged with other disciplines, and used the knowledge and skills we each brought to the table (e.g., I had served as a clinical social worker until my daughter was born) to explore and support what seemed to be human evolution taking root. During this time, a unique and important writing practice came to Tantra, providing an avenue to support and evolve the mind when other disciplines focused on the body or spirit. We saw that supporting meta-psychology and cognitive awareness would be an important contribution to other aspects of human development.

This is where all the threads of my life began to weave together into a spiral tapestry of my existence. As time went on, I realized that getting my doctorate in clinical psychology (PsyD) would be the best path to bring these ideas into the world. I received my doctorate from Saybrook University and wrote my dissertation on restoring one’s life from traumatic stress using the writing practice (templates) brought forth by Tantra.

In the years since then, I’ve been certified in Spiritual Emergence through IMHU and have been coalescing many ideas to contribute to what I see rising as a meta-psychology. My life has been full of amazing people, events, blessings too numerous to share here. It is my honor and pleasure to ‘meet’ you in this virtual way, and I look forward to how our paths may cross in the future.