What is abuse and how do you deal with an abuser?

Discover crucial information in dealing with an abuser and confronting abuse. Most victims respond to abuse in ways that make it worse and overlook the single most important thing that undermines their ability to stop abuse and prevent it from damaging their self-esteem. You'll learn valuable tips, strategies, and resources.

Warning signs of an emotionally abusive relationship

Learn one common trait of all emotionally abusive individuals. You will see how your ability to make a healthy decision about your relationship depends on how willing you are to trust and advocate for yourself. Come away with a list of important questions to consider when you evaluate your intimate relationships.

Your brain's response to trauma

What happens in your brain when you experience trauma? There are parts of your brain that can shut down during or after a
traumatic event. Other parts get over-activated. Being aware of this and learning what to do to counteract it can be really helpful
for you to break out of any patterns that keep you in trauma.

How to know if you're in an abusive relationship

We know we're being abused if we're left with bruises and broken bones, but being in an emotionally abusive relationship is much harder to diagnosis because of myths, guilt, and shame surrounding it. Abusers are expert manipulators, and victims often blame themselves. Find out what various forms of abuse really look like, and discover exactly what to do about it.

Finger pointing: no room for blame or shame

By not pointing the finger at the abused or the abuser we avoid placing judgments, blame and shame on others and ourselves. We learn why avoiding finger-pointing is critical to your healing and health. We then move forward to learn the root reasons why unhealthy behaviors start, continue and grow into abusive actions. With that knowledge, we understand what is behind these cycles so we can release the hurt and trauma they caused.

How does your family imprint affect your relationship choices?

Our parents are our first love and our experience with them creates our relationship blueprint. Trauma within family changes the way our DNA expresses and is shared with following generations. This will continue to influence unless it's resolved. The stress that affects one generation will be played out in the next one. What family history is shaping your life today?

Red lights throughout a relationship

For those of us who have not experienced healthy relationships it may be hard to differentiate what is "normal" healthy behavior and what should not be tolerated. There are some red flags that are more difficult to spot and some that really stand out. I will share with you what to be concerned with whether it's the beginning of a relationship or the relationship is more long term.

Tired of the drama

Some people can’t or won’t work with you to achieve reasonable solutions to relational problems. Instead, they use the only
method they know–drama. And being caught up in someone’s drama has three negative effects: it makes you sick, drives you
crazy, and wears you out. This session examines how to avoid the dramas that some people stage.

Options: should you stay or go?

When should you get out of an abusive situation? And how? Do you go to a shelter? What is that like? Resources to help you make that crucial decision.

Agreements we make with ourselves

Ever feel like you're stuck in a pattern of behavior, pain point, or health issue you can't seem to overcome? Do you sometimes make decisions contrary to what you really want? Breakthroughs can be had when you use these techniques to break out of negative cycles.

The science of breaking free

What is trauma-bonded? What is codependency? There are scientific reasons why you're stuck...and scientific ways of breaking free.

Fragmentation and disassociation

You need to know these two important words, as well as how they impair the mind's ability to advance. We discuss how trauma shatters a mind, heart, and soul. How a soul then learns to live off pieces of itself instead of the "Whole sense of Self." And finally, how healing comes.

What next? Safety, shelter, support & systems

A summary of some of the issues and challenges experienced by survivors as they determine when and if they must seek safety. This will also be informative for those who will be supportive of survivors and or the general public, to have a deeper understanding of what must be considered.

Freeing yourself from crazy-making relationships

Save your sanity and stop the crazy-making! Understand people who hijack relationships for their own purposes while relentlessly scavenging them for power, status, and control. Learn strategies and support you need to reclaim hope, confidence - and your sanity - when dealing with constant uncertainty and jaw-dropping behaviors of difficult people.

How to find a therapist who's great for you

Practical information and strategies for finding high-quality therapy. Learn how to find the right therapist to help you work through your specific challenges and obstacles. Including topics from different types of therapists and therapies to what to expect in your first session.

The importance of no contact

As tempting as it is, the worst thing you can do is allow the narcissist in your life to continue contacting you. They will try various means. Going "No Contact" is the best way for you to resolve the issues and move on with your life. Find out what it is, and how to go about it.

Tough relationships need easy strategies

Emotional Freedom Technique is a method of therapy you can learn and do on your own. It's a powerful self-help method based on research. Clinical trials have shown that EFT tapping is able to rapidly reduce the emotional impact of memories and incidents that trigger emotional distress. Once the distress is reduced or removed, the body can often rebalance itself, and accelerate healing.

How to find and build your own support system after abuse

What type of support can victims of abuse find? In this video, we review local agencies, meetup groups, facebook groups, therapists, and turning towards family and friends. What services are available and how can you access services? What are the benefits of getting a support structure in place?

What does God say about abuse?

That's a big question. When a person in a relationship is repeatedly abusive, destructive, indifferent, and deceitful towards his partner, the church hasn’t really provided adequate answers for the injured spouse other than forgive and try harder to make it work. Find out what God has to say about this situation.

Ways to help your friend or family member get out of an abusive situation

Someone you know has signs, or has even told you, that they are in an abusive relationship. What do you do to help and not cause further harm? Just saying "you should leave him" is usually not helpful. Discover strategies to become the support they need to exit a bad relationship.

Secondary trauma: Taking care of yourself when your friend is in the midst of trauma

If you are a sounding board or support for someone going through emotional trauma, how can you stay present for them and care for yourself without getting overwhelmed? We'll tackle this subject here. 

Navigating courts when divorcing an emotional abuser

Discover the #1 thing you should do when divorcing a narcissist/sociopath or other psychologically abusive person. How should you handle their lies in court? What questions should you ask your attorney? Get these and more questions answered directly with a family law attorney here.

A financial guide to moving on

They hide the money, they steal the money, they try to make finances a fiasco. Discover the specific financial steps you can take when leaving an abusive relationship, as well as red flags for financial misconduct. We'll also discuss who you can turn to for help.

Healing the shame

Tremendous shame is usually the outcome for waking up in an abusive marriage. Pioneer in this field, Beverly Engel, share strategies for uncovering the shame and healing it, as well as insight into the mind of an abuser. Don't miss this interview!

How mindful self-compassion can alleviate the suffering of survivors of emotional abuse

What is self-compassion and what kind of suffering does it target? Our guests in this video describe specific practices you can begin today to cultivate self-compassion. 

Stop breathe believe, mindful living one thought at a time

We can live wholeheartedly with authenticity and joy in a way that honors our true selves. However, often our unhealthy thinking can get in the way. Learn a simple yet powerful practice that can help stop the stream of thoughts flowing through our minds and become aware of the one thought that needs replacing, breathe our way to a state of calm, and then believe a compassionate truth statement.

Healing the body after emotional abuse

Learn about the impact of emotional abuse on the body and how emotional abuse can lead to anxiety and depression, as well as gastrointestinal issues, thyroid issues, adrenal fatigue, blood sugar issues, frequent colds/flu and more. Listeners will learn how they can use diet, herbal/natural medicine, and lifestyle to heal from the effects of emotional abuse. The goal is to empower you to help your whole body recover and regain strength.

Grieving a lost relationship and your lost self

You've lost who you originally thought was the love of your life. You may have even lost your sense of self, your dignity, and your potential. Tamping down regrets and grief will only make them stronger when they inevitably reappear. Here's what you should really do when grieving a lost relationship and your lost self. 

Music to grieve to: Why listening to sad music can make you feel better

Listening to sad music when dealing with grief might seem counterintuitive, but this somber sounding activity has been proven to help. Nothing can prepare you for grief, nor is there a right or wrong way to deal with it, but sad music is an easily accessible and highly effective tool that can help you begin to heal.

Codependency recovery

Here's your key for how to stop explaining and excusing yourself, apologizing, caring more about other people’s opinions and feelings more than your own, and trying to control the other person. We'll share great ways to define yourself after accepting someone else’s projections and being told what you think, feel and are for so long. 

Taking your power back by building core confidence

Using our intuition and tapping into our core confidence are the strongest skills we can learn to prevent abuse. Building those muscles through practice doesn’t have to be difficult. It can even be light and fun! Abuse prevention and recovery is about focusing on ourselves with lightness and joy, not keeping the focus on others with resentment, anger, or regret.

Empowerment through connection

Take away an understanding of the critical importance of connection with others as one traverses the healing journey. Whether it's building resilience through connection with supportive souls or through creating new friendships with healthy boundaries and mutual respect in place, the result is self-empowerment like you've not experienced before.

Thriving after domestic abuse through personal growth

If we don't change, nothing changes. Human brains are hard-wired with programmed pattern, taught to us by important adults to keep us safe. Often our programmed patterns no longer apply to our lives, such as those causing us to be attracted to abusive people. Recognizing the patterns and eliminating or changing them leads to happy, healthy, safe, and authentic lives for domestic abuse survivors.

The science of happiness and fulfillment

Happiness and fulfillment aren't simply pie-in-the-sky dreams that are out of your reach. This session will help you understand the science of happiness, discover key factors in building a happy life, and help you uncover a fulfilling life whatever your circumstances. 

The gifts of boundaries, authenticity, and acceptance

What are strong personal boundaries? And why do we need them? This session includes why we are inauthentic in relationships, and how practicing authenticity helps us heal and even to grow. We also talk about self-acceptance and self-worth and the role that acceptance plays in our emotional health.

The neuroscience of resilience and psychological safety

Our brains and bodies are wired to create safety and trust with each other as a biological imperative. In order for us to become self-regulating, we must have a consistent presence of co-regulation with someone. Without these two types of regulation, the human mind-brain-body system can't function as its most evolved levels.

What does this make possible? How creative resilience is part of recovery

There are times life leaves us without a clear vision for our future. We need space to recover before we can find the resources to move forward. Creative resilience can create that space and refuel our reserves so we can see through the fog to a brilliant future. Knowing how to step into resilience is a critical skill but not complicated. It's a path available to all of us no matter where we are or how we got there.

How to survive parenting with a toxic person

Why does doing the right thing always feel like the wrong thing regarding your kids? There is a way to survive it, but it is probably not what you think. We will talk about how to raise happy and healthy kids in an incredibly difficult situation.

Financial resilience - the importance of knowing your numbers

Resilience is the capacity to recover quickly; to bend and not break under pressure. The good news is there is an art to getting back up again. We pursue strength. Realistically, we seek to be financially armed with the confidence to make timely decisions. This interview will provide practical steps to financial resilience.

Writing to heal

Writing about the hard things in life, digging into the dirt and uncovering the ugly side of life on paper is incredibly healthy. Explore this therapeutic healing process. You'll find four simple steps to heal from your tough stuff, boost your resilience, and transform your life.

Stay tuned for more...