mental health

September 4, 2025

Understanding Fawning: Breaking Cycles of Survival-Based Relationships

Unlike fight, flight, or freeze responses that happen in the moment, fawning is different—it’s a survival pattern learned over time. Dr. Mary Catherine MacDonald explains how this trauma response develops through repeated experiences, creating adults who struggle to simply exist in relationships without constantly scanning for others’ needs. But understanding fawning is the first step… Continue reading

attachment, attachment theory, CPTSD, emotional courage, fawn, mental health, parenting, Personal Development, personal growth, trauma recovery, trauma recovery coaching

attachment theory, attunement, Boundaries, breaking cycles, breaking patterns, child development, childhood trauma, codependency recovery, Dr. Mary Catherine MacDonald, Edward Tronick, emotional regulation, emotional wellness, Family Dynamics, family healing, family therapy, fawning, fight flight freeze, generational trauma, good enough parenting, healing from trauma, hypervigilance, inner child work, mental health, mindful parenting, neuroplasticity, parenting mistakes, people-pleasing, personal growth, psychology, relationships, repair and healing, rupture and repair, secure attachment, self-awareness, Survival Responses, The Joy Reset, therapeutic insights, toxic family dynamics, trauma recovery
July 23, 2025

When Authority Becomes the Enemy of Truth

“Blind belief in authority is the greatest enemy of truth.” — Albert EinsteinThe ambulance lights cut through the darkness at the convenience store. Someone had played Russian roulette and lost. As I drove past that night, seventeen and heartbroken after my boyfriend left me for my best friend, I looked up at the empty sky… Continue reading

abuse of power, adverse religious experiences, authentic self, mental health, personal growth, personal journey, spiritual abuse, spiritual abuse recovery, spiritual trauma, system of abuse, Toxic religion recovery, trauma recovery

abuse prevention, adoption trauma, advocacy, authoritarian abuse, blind obedience, body keeps the score, breaking cycles, breaking silence, child protection, childhood trauma, church hurt, complex trauma, critical thinking, cult recovery, discernment, emotional healing, evangelical trauma, exploitation, exvangelical, faith deconstruction, family dysfunction, finding your voice, gaslighting, generational trauma, grooming, healing community, healing is possible, healing-journey, inner child work, inner wisdom, institutional betrayal, intuition, leaving religion, manipulation tactics, mental health, narcissistic abuse, pastoral abuse, personal growth, post-religious, power dynamics, protecting children, ptsd, questioning faith, red flags, religious fundamentalism, religious manipulation, religious trauma, reparenting, self trust, setting boundaries, speaking truth, spiritual abuse, spiritual awakening, spiritual bypassing, spiritual freedom, survivor stories, survivor support, systemic abuse, therapy, toxic authority, toxic relationships, trauma awareness, trauma Informed, trauma recovery, trauma therapy, trusting your gut, truth seeking, vulnerability
July 19, 2025

What AI Taught Me About Human Connection

Here’s an excerpt for your WordPress blog post: What if AI isn’t the real problem? Through my own experience using AI as a tool for self-reflection, I’ve discovered that our fear of technology replacing human connection might be missing the deeper issue. The real challenge isn’t artificial intelligence – it’s that we’ve lost the ability… Continue reading

addiction recovery, ai, artificial intelligence, authentic living, authentic self, belonging, emotional courage, Emotional Intelligence, emotional regulation, Human Connection, political commentary, Self-Reflection, social issues, technology and society

ai, artificial intelligence, authentic relationships, community, empathy, Human Connection, human presence, introvert, isolation, journaling, listening, mental health, misuse prevention, Nervous System, overthinking, personal growth, political climate, political division, projection, regulation, safety, Self-Reflection, social media, technology dependency, vulnerability, writing
July 16, 2025

Learning to Trust Yourself: A Journey of Self-Discovery

“Here’s what I’ve learned: self-trust isn’t something you either have or don’t have—it’s something you build through small, consistent deposits of self-advocacy.Just like a bank account, trust accumulates through repeated deposits. Every time you honor a commitment to yourself—even a tiny one—you’re making a deposit. Every time you speak up for your needs, set a… Continue reading

authentic living, authentic self, belonging, breaking cycles, mental health, Mental Wellness, self discovery, self trust, self-care, trauma recovery coaching

#empowerment, authentic living, confidence building, emotional healing, Emotional Intelligence, emotional wellness, healing-journey, healthy relationships, inner strength, life coaching, mental health, Mental Wellness, mindfulness, personal boundaries, Personal Development, personal empowerment, personal growth, personal transformation, relationship boundaries, Resilience, self discovery, self trust, self-advocacy, self-awareness, self-care, self-compassion, self-respect, self-worth, setting boundaries, trauma recovery
July 8, 2025

Walking in Shadows: A Journey from Darkness to Light

The toxic faith I grew up with convinced me that looking inward was dangerous—that if I dug beneath the surface, I’d discover nothing but the rot of an irredeemably sinful heart. But what happens when someone already drowning in that internal darkness looks outward and sees nothing but more of the same? When it finally… Continue reading

authentic self, belonging, childhood trauma, collective healing, collective hope, complex trauma, CPTSD, cult recovery, Deconstronstruction, developmental trauma, emotional manipulation, faith, faith and religion, Faith deconstruction help, narcissism, personal growth, religious abuse, religious trauma, Religious trauma syndrome, soul discovery, spiritual abuse, spiritual abuse recovery, spiritual journey, spiritual trauma, spirituality, trauma recovery coaching, Wholeheartedness

authentic spirituality, breaking cycles, church hurt, faith deconstruction, Faith Journey, Fiction, finding authentic faith, finding inner truth, healing from religion, inner healing, inner light, life, mental health, overcoming shame, personal transformation, poetry, religious conditioning, religious healing, religious manipulation, religious trauma, self discovery, spiritual abuse, spiritual awakening, spiritual empowerment, spiritual freedom, Spiritual Growth, spiritual recovery, spiritual resilience, spiritual transformation, toxic faith systems, toxic leadership, toxic religion, writing
June 30, 2025

When Stars Fall: Finding the Light Within

“Sometimes life feels almost too heavy to bear. I find myself turning off the news or closing social media after yet another story of a bright star crashing into darkness—someone whose light had guided so many of us through our own difficult days. But why do their lights go out? Why do they sometimes choose… Continue reading

authentic living, authentic self, community, healing and recovery, mental health, relationships, religious abuse, religious deconstruction, religious freedom, Religious PTSD recovery, Religious trauma syndrome, sacred healing, soul discovery, spiritual abuse recovery, spiritual awakening, spiritual journey, trauma recovery coaching

authentic faith, authentic self, breaking free, deconstruction, faith crisis, faith deconstruction, faith transition, finding community, finding purpose, healing, healing-journey, inner guidance, inner light, inner wisdom, leaving church, life, love, mental health, personal growth, religious conditioning, religious freedom, religious harm, religious recovery, religious trauma, self discovery, spiritual abuse, spiritual awakening, spiritual healing, spiritual independence, spiritual journey, spiritual recovery, spiritual transformation, spirituality, toxic religion
June 6, 2025

Breaking Free from Sexual Shame: A Journey of Ancestral Healing

A personal story of healing from sexual addiction, religious trauma, and generational shame through ancestral wisdom and authentic spirituality. Continue reading

addiction recovery, ancestral wisdom, ancestry, authentic, authentic living, authentic self, awareness, belonging, breaking cycles, childhood trauma, clergy sexual abuse, complex trauma, connection, CPTSD, Deconstronstruction, dna, emotional courage, faith and religion, Generational Patterns, healing and recovery, indigenous wisdom, sacred healing, sexual healing, spiritual abuse recovery, spiritual journey, spirituality and sexuality

abuse cycles, addiction recovery, ancestral connection, ancestral healing, ancestral voices, ancestral wisdom, ancient wisdom, authentic faith, authentic spirituality, belonging, bloodline healing, bloodline patterns, body trauma, childhood trauma, church abuse, colonial wounds, colonization trauma, community healing, confession, connection, creator love, cycle breaking, Dave Belleau, disconnection, dna, documentary film, earth connection, emotional healing, Esk’Etemc, faith healing, family patterns, family secrets, freedom from shame, genealogy, generational healing, generational trauma, healing, healthy sexuality, heart healing, hidden pain, indigenous voices, indigenous wisdom, intergenerational trauma, light over darkness, love over shame, Maurizio Benazzo, mental health, modern disconnection, nature healing, nature wisdom, Newfoundland, pain avoidance, pastoral abuse, pornography addiction, predatory behavior, religious freedom, religious hypocrisy, religious trauma, sacred ceremony, sacred sexuality, sacred work, safety, Science and Nonduality, secrets, sexual addiction, sexual healing, sexual shame, shame, soul healing, southern culture, spiritual abuse, spiritual awakening, spiritual healing, spirituality, The Eternal Song, toxic religion, transparency, trauma, trauma recovery, true religion, truth telling, vulnerability, vulnerability healing, wound healing, Zaya Benazzo
May 4, 2025

Rethinking Emotions: How Your Brain Constructs Your Emotional Experience

“You are an architect of your experience.” – Lisa Feldman Barrett Last week I watched a YouTube video by Lisa Feldman Barrett on how emotions are created. After watching the Inside Out movies, I initially thought emotions were just a normal part of being human—automatic reactions that tell us important things about ourselves. But Barrett’s research Continue reading

CPTSD, Emotional Intelligence, emotions, healing and recovery, mental health resources, Mental Wellness, Resilience, science of emotions, trauma recovery

affect, affective science, allostasis, body awareness, body signals, Boundaries, brain health, brain science, brain-body connection, breath work, cognitive load, constructed emotion, emotional awareness, emotional categories, emotional concepts, emotional construction, emotional flexibility, emotional granularity, emotional healing, emotional health, Emotional Intelligence, emotional literacy, emotional recategorization, emotional regulation, emotional vocabulary, emotional well-being, energy deposits, energy management, energy withdrawals, healing, health, Here are blog tags based on Lisa Feldman Barrett’s body budget concept, interoception, Lisa Feldman Barrett, meditation, mental health, mind-body connection, mindfulness, mood regulation, movement, nature therapy, neuroscience of emotion, nutrition, personal growth, physical sensations, physical well-being, prediction, predictive brain, recovery practices, Resilience, rest, science of emotions, self-care, self-regulation, sensory awareness, sleep, social connection, stress management, trauma recovery