What Growth Looks Like After Trauma Slow, uneven, sacred Growth after trauma rarely looks like progress charts or clean lines. It is uneven. Some days feel light, others heavy. Old reactions resurface without warning. That does not mean you are failing. Trauma changes how the body and brain respond to the world. Healing is not… Continue reading What Growth Looks Like After Trauma
Tag: trauma informed care
What to Do When You’re Triggered in the Moment
What to Do When You’re Triggered in the Moment Real time regulation tools When you are triggered, you do not need insight. You need support. In the moment, focus on what brings your body back into the present. Press your feet into the ground. Name objects around you. Change temperature. Slow your exhale. Avoid analyzing… Continue reading What to Do When You’re Triggered in the Moment
Why Logic Doesn’t Work When You’re Triggered
Why Logic Doesn’t Work When You’re Triggered Bottom-up vs top-down processing When you are triggered, your nervous system is in charge, not your reasoning brain. In moments of threat, the brain prioritizes survival. Blood flow shifts away from areas responsible for logic, reflection, and language and toward areas responsible for action and defense. That is… Continue reading Why Logic Doesn’t Work When You’re Triggered
Your Nervous System Isn’t Broken
Your Nervous System Isn’t Broken It is protecting you Fight, flight, freeze, and fawn are not signs of weakness. They are automatic responses designed to keep you safe. When your nervous system perceives threat, whether physical or emotional, it shifts into survival. This happens without conscious choice. Your body reacts before your mind can reason.… Continue reading Your Nervous System Isn’t Broken
Why Addiction Hurts Everyone in the Room
Why Addiction Hurts Everyone in the Room Addiction does not live in isolation. It affects families, marriages, friendships, and entire systems. When one person struggles, everyone around them feels the impact. Families often reorganize around addiction without realizing it. Roles shift. One person becomes the fixer. Another becomes invisible. Tension fills the space even when… Continue reading Why Addiction Hurts Everyone in the Room
October is a Month of Mental Health Awareness and Action
When we think of mental health, we often think of May which is Mental Health Awareness Month. But October is just as significant, filled with opportunities to raise awareness and take action on issues that deeply affect individuals, families, and communities. World Mental Health Day is on October 10th On October 10th, the world unites… Continue reading October is a Month of Mental Health Awareness and Action
Signs You’re Not Rested (Even If You’re Sleeping)
Signs You’re Not Rested (Even If You’re Sleeping) You slept eight hours. Then you got through your checklist. You even slowed down on the weekend. And still you feel drained.Not just tired, but heavy. Foggy. Flat. That’s because sleep and rest are not the same thing. Sleep Recharges the Body. Rest Restores the Soul. You… Continue reading Signs You’re Not Rested (Even If You’re Sleeping)
The Nervous System Isn’t the Enemy, It’s the Messenger
The Nervous System Isn’t the Enemy, It’s the Messenger You don’t have a broken nervous system.You have a wise one. It’s easy to think something is wrong with you when your heart races over nothing, when you can’t calm down, or when the smallest thing makes you feel like shutting down completely. But those aren’t… Continue reading The Nervous System Isn’t the Enemy, It’s the Messenger
Why August Is the Perfect Month to Reset
Why August Is the Perfect Month to Reset August has always felt like a pause. Not quite summer. Not yet fall. It hangs in that in-between space, asking us to slow down and pay attention—to the parts of ourselves we’ve been too busy to notice. Maybe you've been on autopilot—surviving the summer chaos, riding the… Continue reading Why August Is the Perfect Month to Reset
The Legacy of How You Make People Feel
The Legacy of How You Make People Feel Words fade.Actions are often misunderstood.But emotion? Emotion leaves a mark. Maya Angelou once said: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” And it’s true. People might not remember… Continue reading The Legacy of How You Make People Feel
Know the Difference – Rest Is Not Avoidance
Know the Difference - Rest Is Not Avoidance Sometimes we confuse rest with avoidance. We think if we slow down, we’re just running away from responsibility. But rest and avoidance are not the same thing. Avoidance numbs. Rest restores.Avoidance distracts. Rest connects.Avoidance runs. Rest receives. God never called us to avoid the hard stuff. He… Continue reading Know the Difference – Rest Is Not Avoidance
A Diagnosis Does Not Define You
A Diagnosis Does Not Define You As a therapist, I’ve had so many clients walk into my office carrying the weight of multiple diagnoses—some given by different providers, some self-diagnosed through online research, and some that may have been true at one point but are no longer relevant. It’s frustrating because these are people, not… Continue reading A Diagnosis Does Not Define You
What is a Traumaversary?
What is a Traumaversary? A traumaversary is the anniversary of some sort of trauma in your life. It can be from a deployment, abuse, car accident, traumatic pregnancy/birth, house fires, neglect... the list can go on and on. You aren't obsessing over all the bad things that happened in your life. It is simply something… Continue reading What is a Traumaversary?