Clinical Observations from an Estrangement Clinician: Observation #4
I am an estrangement clinician primarily working with parents who are estranged from their adult sons and/or daughters. Estrangement is a unique phenomenon requiring a specialized approach. My lived experience as an estranged parent is a far greater...
When Adults Talk Children Out of Themselves
Plenty of children never needed fixing, they needed adults who could tell guidance from control and knew when to protect a developing self rather than reshape it to satisfy adult fear, image, religion, family loyalty, gender rules, envy, convenience, or unexamined...
Behaviors Caused By Trauma
You Can’t Run Away From Your Own Head Human beings are like an iceberg. We go through life sharing only the pieces of ourselves that we want people to see. But there’s so much more going on inside. Isaac Newton’s third law states that: “for every action (force)...
What if I am Damaged for Good?
What if I will never heal from trauma? What if my nervous system is so damaged from childhood trauma that no amount of therapy and practice will reteach it a sense of safety in places and situations that trigger me? Is it possible for a nervous system to be so...
8 Ways to Emotionally Support Yourself When No One Else Does
What can you do when no one is giving you closure, safety, or nurturing? Here are 8 needs trauma survivors have and what you can do to meet them yourself. Becoming Your Own First Responder Quinn sat on the edge of their twin bed, staring at their phone screen through...
Blind Cruelty
How do we perceive, interpret, or process the reality of human behavior that goes on around us? The best answer is: “very carefully.” When another’s presence approaches our self-imposed safety bubble or personal space, we have choices about how to interpret the...
Amplifying Hope
Surviving the invisible epidemic of emotional and psychological abuse On November 19th 2023, I answered a call from an unknown female who, in 30 minutes, would blindside and obliterate the family my children and I knew. On that call, she divulged an abundance of...
Trauma Can Make You Feel Broken: Understanding CPTSD and Why You Feel This Way.
Within me, a quiet question lingered for years: Why am I feeling so broken?” I experienced periods where I lacked self-understanding of what was going on with me. I found myself puzzled by my feelings of unease when I was with certain people or in specific...