Trauma Recovery

Is Suffering Really Optional?

Wait. What? I saw this quote on a support group forum today that was written by a fellow trauma survivor. It's a somewhat popular...

Why I Will Only Work With Client-Centered Therapists

Recently, I made the decision to start working with a new therapist. It was time for me to make a change (which is always a completely...

The Topic of Forgiveness Is Messy for a Trauma Survivor

Forgiveness is a complicated and messy topic for a trauma survivor. Many of us were taught that it was our job to forgive our abusers no...

When People Use the Term "Victim Mentality" to Gaslight Actual Victims of Harm and Abuse

We see this all the time. Abusers and people who support abusers and abusive systems LOVE to use the terms "victim," "victim mentality,"...

My Thoughts on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, as an Ex-Mormon

I am going to admit right now that I haven't watched this show on Hulu, so I'm not going to comment on any of the individual people and...

Looking for Some Light

I'm not going to lie. The process of healing from trauma (aka, living life) can be challenging at times. It's not always easy to figure...

The Fluctuating Nature of Choice

Several years ago, I found myself navigating a complicated chronic health situation that influenced every single aspect of my life. I was...

Creating Beauty in a Complex World

I don't think anyone would argue about the fact that we live in a complex world. With so many different types of personalities, belief...

How I Practice Trauma-Informed Mindfulness

Processing three different types of traumas has been a lot for me. The medical trauma collected from ten years of battling a complicated,...

Trauma Recovery is a Uniquely Personal Process

As I've been doing the work to heal from complex trauma, I have found myself engaging in several different types of recovery spaces -...

Cultivating Joy After Trauma

There was a period of time in my life when I thought I would never feel joy again. The compounding grief and pain I had collected from...

What Does It Even Mean to Heal?

My husband and I were driving around yesterday and he asked me what the concept of healing even means to me at this point. It surprised...

Music Helps Soothe My Inner Child

I'm not one to claim that any one particular thing can heal you in one fell swoop. I happen to think that healing is a long process full...

How the Law of Attraction Messed Me Up

I found myself on a Reddit thread today with a group of people who are doing the good, hard work of healing their lives. These are people...

Why I Live Life on My Own Terms

I was raised in a culture that taught me to believe that my male leaders knew exactly what was best for me. They taught me what I should...

How I Process My Feelings

I was watching a video this morning and the creator was sharing her thoughts about the concept of feelings. She mentioned that when she...

Bubble Baths and Boundaries

When the concept of self-care began rising in our collective conversations, I personally had a bit of a hard time with it. I was raised...

12 Habits That Have Changed My Life

I know this title sounds a bit cliche and slightly overdramatic, but sometimes there really are things that actually do make a big...

Naming and Feeling My Feelings

My youngest son graduated from high school yesterday and I thought I was going to feel just fine about it. He's my fourth child to...

Stepping Inside My Comfort Zone

As I've been doing the work to heal from complex trauma, I've noticed that many of the typical common cultural platitudes have not been...