I was asked to write a letter to my younger self in therapy this week, and I have spent some time thinking of what to write. It turned out to be a lot more difficult than I thought it would be, but I eventually came up with this. Hey, Younger Me, I know things feel […]
The Difficult Truths of Trauma Recovery
There are numerous challenges involved in recovering from trauma and CPTSD One of those difficulties is that recognizing something that heals also meant recognizing something else that hurts. For example, If I acknowledge that it was my abusers fault, then that meant there was nothing I could have done to help myself. Or If I acknowledge that I can now be the person […]
Finding Peace: A Journey Through CPTSD and Self-Discovery
Recovery means something different to everyone of us who have dealt with a lifelong diagnosis of living with cPTSD. We have faced pain and uphill struggles that none of us would wish on anybody. One thing I have come to realize is that non-traumatized people have less potential to achieve the deep inner peace that […]
The Dopamine Habit And CPTSD
Those of us that have experienced childhood trauma missed out on so much. One of those things was the feel-good feelings that occur naturally. For us, the simple act of praise from a parent could even make us cautious. Our brains become wired to seek out danger and even something innocent puts us in a […]
CPTSD Emotional Resilience Healing Journey Mental Health Self-Acceptance Self-Awareness Self-Love Trauma Recovery
Learning To Love Myself For Who I Am
For many years, I believed deep down that I was unworthy of love, and that no one could ever truly accept me for who I was. I engaged in unhealthy behaviors to prove this belief to myself. I felt undeserving of love, particularly because of my history of childhood abuse. In my mind, there was […]
Childhood Sexual Abuse CPTSD Healing Journey Inner Child Work Mental Health Self-Validation Therapy Trauma Recovery
Why Self-Validation Matters After Childhood Trauma
Growing up with abuse and never being able to ask for help, the idea of speaking up felt completely foreign. I had nobody to turn to, and deep down, I didn’t think I’d be believed. For 40 years, I carried that secret. Looking back, desperation seemed to be the theme of my formative years. Desperate […]