Felicia Chiao’s drawing: “The house is well built but the foundation is unstable” is such a brilliant metaphor for the role of attachment and personality in our psychological makeup. It’s the first 2 to 3 years of our lives that lay the foundation of our emotional lives for the rest of our lives. If were …
There are many reasons it’s difficult to leave an abusive relationship. Some of the reasons are of practical nature, fx. Financial or safety worries. Others are of a more psychological nature. One of them is the psychological phenomenon of trauma bonding. Trauma bonding forms in exploitive relationships. It’s best described as: “The sicker the relationship, …
The sicker the relationship, the stronger the bond – trauma bonding and what that means Read More »
This photo, originally from Janina Fisher, PhD, is one that I show quite often to my clients. The response is usually the same, a quiet moment followed by: “Wow…” Most people have never seen their pain and symptoms drawn up like this, haven’t made the connection between the symptoms they’re manifesting and their painful experiences …
Imprints of trauma are more varied than you realise Read More »
When you look at a forest, it looks as all the trees are individuals, standing there in the ground all alone. What you might not know, is that underneath the ground, they are all interconnected. Did you know that trees operate through an intricate system called the “wood wide web”, which consists of a symbiosis …
They say time heals all wounds, but that is only half part true. In order for a wound to heal, the conditions for healing must be right. If you break your leg, but you need to continue walking on it, the wound will re-open again and again. Wounds need care, rest, shelter, time, space and …
Never underestimate the healing power of your own brain Read More »
Research shows that both the perpetrator and the victim in domestic abuse situations minimize the impact the abuse will have on their children. People tell themselves that the children don’t realise what’s going on, that they never see anything directly, that they were asleep, that they’re to young to understand what’s going on. Its an …
Our social network is much more important than most people realise. It is sometimes said that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with. It is absolutely vital for your mental and emotional health to surround yourself with the people that lift you up, not the ones that bring …
Need help developing your social connections? Try this exercise! Read More »
