The edge of the pool is cold and harsh and we stand in a line watching one of our instructors thrash around in the water as if he was drowning.  I am 11 years old and today I am on the final...

Here I sit in the middle of 1000 people who had consumed the conference learnings for the last three days.  I realize that I am in the middle of the room and escape will be...

"I am not okay

I'm barely gettin' by

I'm losing track of days

And losin' sleep at night"

Jellyroll

If there ever was a theme song that describes the life of a trauma survivor, this is it. I...

"Do or do not, there is no try."

Yoda

After much internal conflict I took a week off and dug myself a few garden trenches. I placed seed, fertilized lawns and sat outside just listening to...

"Trauma is prevalent in our world and its effects can ripple out, shaping our interactions and relationships at home and at work"

 We interrupt this peaceful slumber with an eye opening...

OK where are all the people who, when triggered go right into anger mode? You are my people, unfortunately we share the inability to keep our lids closed when a trigger cuts deep into a trauma...

Life changes fast. Life changes in an instant.

You can sit down to dinner and life as you know it changes"

Joan Didion

This week I have been overly triggered. It started when I was working outside...

"Who you were, who you are and who you will be are three different people"

Yesterday was cleaning closet day at Casa Anastasia with the goal of clearing out anything that was no longer of...

"Trauma comes back as a Reaction not a memory"

Bessel van der Kolk

A childhood filled with never knowing when the temperature was going to turn to rage - 200 blocks
Raised in a home lacking...

"Stay with me,

Let's just breathe

Practiced on my sins, never gonna let you win, uh-huh

Under everything, just another human being, uh-huh

I don't want to hurt

There's so much in this world to make...

"Fear is a mile wide and an inch deep"

Edgar Nye

 I grew up on the North side of Manning as the youngest of 4 girls. Our home, like many others in the 70's was dysfunctional, with lots of...

I am fresh off of the snowshoes this morning. It is a warm day in March here on the lake and the entire hamlet is prepping for the annual ice fishing derby. Soon the ice will begin to melt away and...