Chronic Illness Trauma Studies
How Adversity Shapes Health & Why It's Not In Your Head
Guy MacPherson invited me to his Trauma Therapist Project for a chronic illness and trauma podcast. We talk about the science and some of my own story of how this became my passion. It was a joy and Guy's inviting style holds depth of curiosity and wisdom, with questions that get right to the heart ...
If you have a chronic illness (or a chronic condition, a mental health condition or other symptoms), you may have wondered if experiences in your babyhood affected your risk, such as being born cesarean or not breastfeeding. Or if your mother being sick during her pregnancy with you, losing a parent ...
If you've been living with a chronic condition, understanding the role of adversity can help make better sense of your symptoms, flare-ups and why it started when it did. This new lens explains why having a chronic illness is not your fault, not in your head, and not because of what you did or ...
I don't really "want" to write about shame and other difficult emotions because it means having to feel into these feelings. And as many of you know, shame, in particular, can feel annihilating. But the origins of shame are sneaky and we tend to think it's because something is wrong with US. The ...
There are empowering, encouraging things about understanding the role of adversity and trauma as risk factors for chronic illness. Among the most important are that it provides opportunities. Opportunities for making sense of symptoms. Opportunities for removing blame. And opportunities for planting ...
A Little Story Have you ever heard that the aloe vera plant can be helpful in reducing the pain of a burn or even healing it? Then rubbed it on a your scalded skin for a few minutes, had nothing helpful happen, and tossed the idea out with the plant and chocked it up to some old myth? That was ...
Gentle, nurturing support in the form of 6 mindfulness meditations for healing trauma. Each video highlights a core principle that has become a foundation for how I've come to think about and work with my own health, disease, and healing. The videos are presented by Kekuni Minton, Ph.D., senior ...
I never thought I'd be UNable to chow down on salads for almost 4 years. Or that I wouldn't be able to tolerate apples or peaches or other fruit for even longer. Eliminating desserts and bread and other carbs? Not so hard to imagine. But I could not, in a million years, have predicted that I'd ...
When my stove died some years ago at the time I was still living in my 1970s house, I preempted further disturbances in my kitchen by also replacing the ancient, old style dishwasher and the refrigerator that regular made noises as though it was in the throes of death (ps - a wee heads up in case ...
