“When I was 12 years old, my parents moved into their own place, along with my brother and sister. They left me with my grandparents. I could only see my family on weekends, and on Sunday evenings I would go back home. I was not able to build a normal relationship with my brother and sister. I even thought at one point that I was adopted, which was against all logic.”
Helped by:
Journaling
Self-improvement
“At 22 years old, I knew that I was dying of alcoholism. I accepted that. The trauma symptoms I experienced were too overwhelming to stop drinking. When I was sober, I would sometimes experience 30 to 40 body memories of being sexually assaulted–again and again in succession. I drank to feel numb.”
“I never mentioned the accident to anyone until I met my future husband at 22. He was sympathetic and supportive, and helped me understand the enormity of what I had been through.I still have not talked to my siblings about it.”
Struggled with:
Abuse
Depression
Eating disorder
Suicidal
“Then something happened. On about day 3 or 4, the group spoke and I realized that their way of thinking around food, their rituals, and their tendencies, were all the same as the things I would do. It was wild because I thought I had made these things up myself and here I was with a room full of people who did the same things.”
Struggled with:
Abuse
Depression
Divorce
Eating disorder
PTSD
“My mother said she wanted to end it in bloodshed and she waited for him to come home from his late-night meeting. She thought better of it when he was late arriving home. She was overwhelmed with thoughts of her in prison and me in foster care. To say that she made the right decision in achieving the goal of a good life is an answer I struggled to answer for many years.”
Struggled with:
Abuse
Anxiety
Childhood
CPTSD
Depression
“As my anxiety levels grew, I turned to alcohol and then combined that with Vicodin to fend off the bad feelings. I would drink to the point of blacking out on a regular basis, sometimes never knowing how I got home.”
“A man spiked my drink and assaulted me, leading to a diagnosis of PTSD and depression. This event fundamentally changed my life, leading me into a violent relationship and a period of repression and struggle. Despite these challenges, life moved on. I got married, and had two beautiful boys, but then faced another intense period of grief, losing seven loved ones in just a few months.”
Struggled with:
Abuse
Assault
Depression
Grief
PTSD
“The abuse expanded over time. My mother could be incredibly kind and would have given Martha Stewart a run for her money. The problem came when her mood and personality would flip on a dime, her eyes in slits, and I would be beaten, almost to the point of blacking out, for what reason I couldn’t understand.”
Struggled with:
Abuse
Childhood
Depression
PTSD
Suicidal
“When my post-traumatic stress (PTS) started to develop, I felt something that I’d never felt before in my life. I started having vivid nightmares, intrusive thoughts, and flashbacks that were constantly bringing back the trauma.”
Struggled with:
Abuse
Anxiety
Childhood
Depression
PTSD
“I remember moments of feeling completely hopeless like I had no identity outside of my dysfunctional relationships. At my lowest, I numbed feelings with unhealthy habits. With support and inner work, I’ve realized my worth comes from within. Now I know approving of myself is what matters most.”