Healing the Inner Critic: C-PTSD and Toxic Shame
May 18, 2024
If you have Complex PTSD, you're probably familiar with a harsh, relentless inner critic. Rooted in toxic shame, this voice is not your authentic self - it's a collection of messages absorbed from trauma and abuse. Here's how to understand and heal it.
From Self-Harm to Self-Care: A Survivor's Journey
May 12, 2024
Recovery from self-harm isn't a straight line. It's a gradual journey from using pain to cope with pain, to learning gentler ways of caring for yourself. It's messy, non-linear, and deeply personal - but it's possible.
Postpartum PTSD: When Birth Triggers Past Trauma
May 10, 2024
For survivors of sexual assault, abuse, or other trauma, childbirth can trigger or worsen PTSD symptoms. The physical vulnerability, loss of control, and medical interventions during birth can echo past trauma, leading to postpartum PTSD. Understanding this and finding trauma-informed care can help you heal and bond with your baby.
Reclaiming Your Body After Trauma: A Healing Journey
May 05, 2024
After trauma, your body can feel like enemy territory - a place you don't want to inhabit. Reclaiming your body is about rebuilding trust, reconnecting with physical sensations, and remembering that your body belongs to you. This healing journey takes time, patience, and compassion, but it's possible to feel safe and at home in your own skin again.
Panic Disorder After Trauma: When Fear Takes Over
April 15, 2024
Panic disorder is common after trauma, creating a cycle of intense fear and avoidance. Panic attacks can become so frequent and unpredictable that you live in constant fear of the next one. Understanding why trauma survivors develop panic disorder and learning effective treatment strategies can help you break this cycle and reclaim your life.
Body Autonomy After Abuse: Healing Your Relationship with Food
March 15, 2024
Abuse violates your fundamental right to control your own body. This violation often extends to your relationship with food - creating disordered eating, body disconnection, or using food for control. Healing means reclaiming your body as your own and developing a peaceful relationship with food.
Emotional Flashbacks: The Hidden Symptom of C-PTSD
March 05, 2024
Suddenly flooded with fear, shame, or helplessness - with no clear memory attached? You may be experiencing an emotional flashback, one of the most common yet least understood symptoms of Complex PTSD. Learn what emotional flashbacks are, what triggers them, and how to use Pete Walker's 13 steps to manage them and reclaim your sense of safety.
Understanding Self-Harm as a Trauma Response
March 01, 2024
Self-harm is a common trauma response, not attention-seeking. For many survivors, it's a way of managing unbearable emotional pain, regaining control, or feeling something when numb. Understanding why it happens - and learning healthier alternatives - is the first step toward breaking the cycle.
Eating Disorders and Trauma: Reclaiming Control Through Food
February 28, 2024
Eating disorders and trauma are deeply connected - up to 50% of people with eating disorders have experienced trauma. When trauma strips away your sense of control, food and body control can become a way to reclaim what was taken from you. Understanding this connection is essential for recovery: you can't fully heal from an eating disorder without addressing the underlying trauma.
Grieving the Life You Lost to Abuse
January 15, 2024
Abuse doesn't just hurt you in the present - it steals your past and your future. Survivors carry a profound grief for the life they lost, and this grief deserves to be acknowledged. Grieving what was taken is an essential - and often overlooked - part of healing.