Survivors News and Reviews

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Sharing – People harm themselves to cope with big emotions. You can help them heal.
ByMikeM March 7, 2022March 6, 2022 Reading Time: 1 minute

I appreciate that there is someone researching this, and I am also glad that the subject of the article, artist Donalen Rojas Bowers, is sharing her story as well. It’s not an easy thing to talk about, it’s not an easy thing to learn about, and it’s definitely not an easy thing to find out someone you love is self-harming.

None of that unease should matter when compared to understanding and helping kids and adults who feel the need to self-harm because there have no better options available. The only way we find those is to talk about this.

Read More Sharing – People harm themselves to cope with big emotions. You can help them heal.
Announcements

Australian “Boys Do Cry” Mental Health Campaign
ByMikeM March 4, 2022March 3, 2022 Reading Time: 1 minute

We haven’t been brought up to talk, especially when things are difficult. We’ve been encouraged to “man up” instead. I’m all for having strength, but not talking when it’s necessary is killing too many men for us to continue. That’s true everywhere, and even though I’m not in Australia, I know it’s true there as well. Let’s hope this resource reaches plenty of them.

Read More Australian “Boys Do Cry” Mental Health Campaign
Announcements

New Raising Joy Podcast Covers Kids Mental Health
ByMikeM March 3, 2022March 2, 2022 Reading Time: 2 minutes

Cook Children’s Health Care System in Texas has started a new podcast about kids’ mental health as part of their Joy Campaign which is a suicide prevention communication initiative.

Read More New Raising Joy Podcast Covers Kids Mental Health
Links

Sharing – When You Have a Lifelong Struggle With PTSD and Depression
ByMikeM March 2, 2022March 2, 2022 Reading Time: 2 minutes

It can be a struggle when so many of our friends and even professionals want to help us overcome abuse to “get back to” ourselves when there is no previous version of ourselves to use as a target. I don’t think this should be the goal anyway. The goal for any child abuse victim should not be to go back to being a younger version of themselves before the abuse, the goal should be to build a life after abuse. I didn’t find much healing in trying to remember my early childhood, but I found a ton of healing in having someone help me design the life I wanted to have as an adult and helping me feel worthy and capable of having that.

Read More Sharing – When You Have a Lifelong Struggle With PTSD and Depression
Links

Sharing – My Husband Took His Life After Hiding Years of Sexual Abuse
ByMikeM February 28, 2022February 27, 2022 Reading Time: 2 minutes

Lenore’s story is sad and tragic, but her message is important. We lose so many survivors, men, and women, who just never find a way to share their pain and look for help. People who live without hope because they feel shame about something that was never their fault. I encourage you to read what she has to say about her hope in sharing her husband’s story. I also encourage you to consider how many survivors we lose in the same way who we don’t even know were abused as children because they never felt safe enough to tell anyone. I guarantee there are many more people like that than we would like to think about.

Read More Sharing – My Husband Took His Life After Hiding Years of Sexual Abuse
Links

Sharing – Having your pain invalidated is associated with increased shame and, in turn, an increased risk of depression
ByMikeM February 25, 2022February 24, 2022 Reading Time: 1 minute

There’s more at the link, but again I’m going to ask, given the positive impacts of validating someone’s pain and emotions, and the negative impacts of invalidating those same things, why would we do anything else?

Read More Sharing – Having your pain invalidated is associated with increased shame and, in turn, an increased risk of depression