by Elisabeth | Jul 22, 2020 | Defenders, Dissociation, Relationships
When we are born into an abusive family, we are born into a war we didn’t know we were fighting. We also don’t know how to fight it. We were never given the weapons to fight this war. But the attacks on us start the minute we are born. I am not suggesting we are...
by Elisabeth | Jun 10, 2020 | Recovery, Relationships, Trauma In Society
There is a story in my family that my grandfather was a member of the KKK. This story is told differently from what you might be thinking. There is an eye roll and a condescending tone when it is told. It is told as if he was a silly little man making silly little...
by Elisabeth | May 9, 2018 | Recovery, Relationships, Trauma In Society
Mother’s Day is here again. This will be my 7th Mother’s Day without a mother. That isn’t true, is it? It has been 7 years since I cut you off. But I never really had a mother. This year, I want to do something for you. I’m not giving you a gift. I haven’t done...
by Elisabeth | Aug 16, 2017 | Defenders, Trauma In Society
Anxiety has been my lifelong companion. While it has been debilitating at times, my recovery work has helped me so much. I don’t have the same responses to life that I did in my younger years. I don’t get paralyzed in the same way. I can breathe through oncoming...
by Elisabeth | Mar 29, 2017 | Parenting, Recovery
One of the most important and difficult aspects of recovery work is finding balance in our lives. During our traumatic experiences, our inner parts split off in an attempt to keep us safe. In doing so, they stored their childlike beliefs until they had the...
