About This Event
Let's Talk Invalidation: How Identity-Based Stress Can Shape Borderline Personality Symptoms
An Emotions Matter Live Seminar
Featuring Ramya Ramadurai, PhD & Zephrah Soto
Thursday, October 22, 2026 via Zoom
7 PM ET / 6 PM CT / 5 PM MT / 4 PM PT
About the Seminar:
Invalidation is considered a critical etiological factor in Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), and broader experiences such as identity-based discrimination may function as a form of interpersonal invalidation, creating unique risk or protective pathways for people with minoritized identities. This presentation will highlight recent research on the relationship between discrimination, coping, and BPD symptoms among Black women. Participants will also hear perspectives grounded in lived experience.
About the Presenters:
Ramya Ramadurai, PhD, earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from American University and recently completed her predoctoral internship at Harvard Medical School/McLean Hospital. She is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow within the Center for Accelerating Practices to End Suicide (CAPES) under Dr. Edwin Boudreaux and is currently a CAPES Emerging Scholar. In graduate school her research focused on emotional and interpersonal experiences in Borderline Personality Disorder, and clinically she received significant training supporting transdiagnostic adults navigate significant emotional challenges and suicidality and has particular experience delivering Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. Her current translational research program focuses suicide prevention and pursues two interconnected lines of work: 1) identifying affective and interpersonal predictors of suicidality; and 2) developing, evaluating, and implementing digital and brief psychotherapy interventions to reduce suicidality and promote living. She takes a person-centered approach, incorporating social identity and related stress to both lines of work, to promote the cultural responsivity of suicide care.
Zephrah Soto is a mental health advocate, educator, and certified Peer Support Specialist, passionate about
dismantling the stigma surrounding Borderline Personality Disorder. With a BFA in Recorded Music from NYU,
she began her career in the music industry before transitioning to psychology, where she is completing her BS
in Psychology at Brooklyn College. Her lived experience with BPD drives her work at the intersection of self-
identity, trauma recovery, and community support, where she focuses on fostering understanding and
empowerment through education and research. She is also committed to amplifying LGBTQIA+ voices in
mental health spaces, ensuring more inclusive and affirming conversations. Zephrah plans to pursue a career
as a psychologist, furthering her passions for research, academia, and advocacy. She looks forward to sharing
her insights on the path to wellness.
Registration Fees:
- BPD Lived Experience: $15
- General Admission: $20
Those who register will be emailed the Zoom meeting link with instructions on the registration receipt and will receive a reminder email prior to the seminar.
Disclaimer:
These seminars do not take the place of medical advice or treatment. There will be resources available for those seeking more information about BPD and support. Registrants will be asked to complete a post-event survey to provide feedback about the seminar experience and help Emotions Matter learn more about the needs of the BPD community.
Registration Policy:
Registration fees are non-refundable. If you are unable to attend the live seminar, a recording will be emailed to all registered participants following the event.
Emotions Matter Community Group Guidelines:
1. Your safety and well-being, as well as the safety of the event, is important to us.
2. Use respectful language. Words and body language matter. Be mindful of how others can interpret your communication.
3. We accept differences and promote acceptance, especially with regard to gender, sexual orientation, identity, race, ethnicity, age, religion, or politics.
4. Respect confidentiality. No photographs of other event participants.
5. Avoid making assumptions about other people’s experience of BPD. No judgment.
6. Show kindness and compassion for others who are struggling.
7. All are welcome to share via the chat and Q/A features, but participation is optional. No one person should monopolize the event time.
8. Avoid interrupting, which can make other event participants feel invalidated.
9. Avoid explicit expressions of self-harm or trauma, which may be upsetting to others.
10. If at any point you express concerns about your safety, we will offer support. If your emotions escalate and we are not able to comfort you, we will encourage you to reach out to your support system or consult a mental health professional.
Questions? Email info@emotionsmatterbpd.org.
About This Event
Let's Talk Invalidation: How Identity-Based Stress Can Shape Borderline Personality Symptoms
An Emotions Matter Live Seminar
Featuring Ramya Ramadurai, PhD & Zephrah Soto
Thursday, October 22, 2026 via Zoom
7 PM ET / 6 PM CT / 5 PM MT / 4 PM PT
About the Seminar:
Invalidation is considered a critical etiological factor in Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), and broader experiences such as identity-based discrimination may function as a form of interpersonal invalidation, creating unique risk or protective pathways for people with minoritized identities. This presentation will highlight recent research on the relationship between discrimination, coping, and BPD symptoms among Black women. Participants will also hear perspectives grounded in lived experience.
About the Presenters:
Ramya Ramadurai, PhD, earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from American University and recently completed her predoctoral internship at Harvard Medical School/McLean Hospital. She is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow within the Center for Accelerating Practices to End Suicide (CAPES) under Dr. Edwin Boudreaux and is currently a CAPES Emerging Scholar. In graduate school her research focused on emotional and interpersonal experiences in Borderline Personality Disorder, and clinically she received significant training supporting transdiagnostic adults navigate significant emotional challenges and suicidality and has particular experience delivering Dialectical Behavioral Therapy. Her current translational research program focuses suicide prevention and pursues two interconnected lines of work: 1) identifying affective and interpersonal predictors of suicidality; and 2) developing, evaluating, and implementing digital and brief psychotherapy interventions to reduce suicidality and promote living. She takes a person-centered approach, incorporating social identity and related stress to both lines of work, to promote the cultural responsivity of suicide care.
Zephrah Soto is a mental health advocate, educator, and certified Peer Support Specialist, passionate about
dismantling the stigma surrounding Borderline Personality Disorder. With a BFA in Recorded Music from NYU,
she began her career in the music industry before transitioning to psychology, where she is completing her BS
in Psychology at Brooklyn College. Her lived experience with BPD drives her work at the intersection of self-
identity, trauma recovery, and community support, where she focuses on fostering understanding and
empowerment through education and research. She is also committed to amplifying LGBTQIA+ voices in
mental health spaces, ensuring more inclusive and affirming conversations. Zephrah plans to pursue a career
as a psychologist, furthering her passions for research, academia, and advocacy. She looks forward to sharing
her insights on the path to wellness.
Registration Fees:
- BPD Lived Experience: $15
- General Admission: $20
Those who register will be emailed the Zoom meeting link with instructions on the registration receipt and will receive a reminder email prior to the seminar.
Disclaimer:
These seminars do not take the place of medical advice or treatment. There will be resources available for those seeking more information about BPD and support. Registrants will be asked to complete a post-event survey to provide feedback about the seminar experience and help Emotions Matter learn more about the needs of the BPD community.
Registration Policy:
Registration fees are non-refundable. If you are unable to attend the live seminar, a recording will be emailed to all registered participants following the event.
Emotions Matter Community Group Guidelines:
1. Your safety and well-being, as well as the safety of the event, is important to us.
2. Use respectful language. Words and body language matter. Be mindful of how others can interpret your communication.
3. We accept differences and promote acceptance, especially with regard to gender, sexual orientation, identity, race, ethnicity, age, religion, or politics.
4. Respect confidentiality. No photographs of other event participants.
5. Avoid making assumptions about other people’s experience of BPD. No judgment.
6. Show kindness and compassion for others who are struggling.
7. All are welcome to share via the chat and Q/A features, but participation is optional. No one person should monopolize the event time.
8. Avoid interrupting, which can make other event participants feel invalidated.
9. Avoid explicit expressions of self-harm or trauma, which may be upsetting to others.
10. If at any point you express concerns about your safety, we will offer support. If your emotions escalate and we are not able to comfort you, we will encourage you to reach out to your support system or consult a mental health professional.
Questions? Email info@emotionsmatterbpd.org.