Dissociation

     The messages we get around relationships and abuse in our culture can be so very confusing and harmful. We get bombarded with messages about the importance of family, of staying connected and how we only get one family and how blood is thicker than…

We aren’t talking nearly enough about the current administration is retraumatizing for clients who grew up with emotionally and verbally abusive, gaslighting, authoritarian, or narcissistic caregivers.   When we talk about how hard it is to heal when you are living in the same environment…

Disorganized attachment develops when the caregivers are sources of fear, and it’s highly correlated with abuse. These caregivers may be terrifyingly over-responsive or frighteningly unresponsive, or may vacillate between these two. Caregivers who are consistently contradictory in their communication can create disorganized attachment, such as…

Avoidant attachment develops when caregivers are emotionally distant, unavailable/absent, or neglectful. These caregivers are often emotionally misattuned to their children and may be cold, distant, critical or highly focused on achievement. These caregivers do not tolerate emotional expression and expect their child to be independent…

   Boundaries don’t fail. We can fail to share our boundaries. We can fail in following through on enforcing our boundaries. But when someone doesn’t like or respect our boundaries doesn’t mean they’ve failed. Just because you feel uncomfortable when setting a boundary or uncomfortable…

June is national PTSD Awareness month.  For many, the concept of PTSD is linked to military service. The reality however, is that this disorder can affect anyone.  In the US, approximately 6.8% of adults will experience PTSD in their lifetimes, with women twice as likely…