Trust issues and CPTSD go together like peas and carrots. And it’s not because we’re naturally suspicious people; it’s because life taught us that trusting people is risky business. When you’ve been betrayed, neglected, or manipulated over and over, your brain learns that trust equals danger. When Your Body Doesn’t Get the Memo The problem […]
Acceptance Childhood Sexual Abuse CPTSD CPTSD Recovery Healing Journey Mental Health Self-Acceptance Self-Worth
CPTSD and the Struggle for True Acceptance
Why Acceptance Feels Like Everything There are many things CPTSD makes harder than they should be. For me, one of the big ones is my need to be accepted, not necessarily liked. I get that people will either like me or not. What I really want is to be accepted for who I am, and […]
Why Healing Still Hurts After All the Work
If you’ve been following my blog, you know I’ve put in the work. Not just little steps here and there, but years of therapy, really digging into the messy stuff, and a whole lot of uncomfortable growth. I’ve spent hours in therapy. Dug through emotional wreckage. Untangled beliefs that weren’t even mine. I faced parts […]
Getting to Know My IFS Parts
IFS stands for Internal Family Systems, and no, it’s not about your in-laws or your Wi-Fi setup. It’s a therapy model based on a pretty wild but surprisingly comforting idea: we’re not just one “self.” We’re a whole system of selves, or “parts,” each with its own voice, its own job, and its own emotional baggage. […]
7 Signs You Might Be Living with CPTSD
7 Key Symptoms of CPTSD (Complex PTSD Signs You Should Know) I recently wrote about the difference between CPTSD and PTSD, how CPTSD often includes the symptoms of PTSD plus additional layers tied to long-term, repeated trauma. It’s not just the flashbacks and fear. It’s the ripple effects that bleed into your sense of self, […]
Inside Out, But Trauma Got the Remote
One of my daughter’s favorite movies is Pixar’s Inside Out. We’ve watched it together more times than I can count. And honestly? It’s become one of my favorites too. It’s clever, heartfelt, and somehow it makes all these big, messy feelings make sense, not just for kids, but for adults, too. And every time I […]