It saddens me to think about all the years I spent wishing that I never existed. I thought that death was the only way that my suffering would end. But that proved to be far from the truth. I'm now grateful for every single day that I have on Earth.

In this video, I discuss the importance of goal setting and self-care, just putting one foot in front of the other, and holding onto one more day until you can get enough separation from your pain.

My book, Reclaim Your Life After Trauma: The Power of Goal Setting, is dedicated to how I used goal setting to separate myself from my unchangeable past and I provide the reader with the tools they can use to do the same. Sign up here to begin reading the Introduction and Chapter 1 for free: serotinouslife.com/reclaim-your-life-book

My book, Transformation After Trauma: Embracing Post-Traumatic Growth, is dedicated to the self-care tools I used in my healing journey. Each section includes actionable steps so the reader can try each tool in...

I fell so far after my traumas. It still pains me to think about how I hurt myself and others when I was just trying to figure out how to survive. I know I was just doing the very best I could, but there was a lot of devastation left behind from my self-destruction. 

The thing about self-destruction is we don’t only hurt ourselves in the process. In this video I discuss why it’s important to get help after experiencing trauma and to find positive ways to cope so we don’t continue to hurt ourselves and others. 

We pass along pain from one generation to the next in our families and within our communities when we refuse to do the work necessary to heal after our trauma. Yes, it sucks that we had to endure the pain we’ve experienced. Yes, it sucks that not a thing can be done to change the fact that we experienced trauma and that those memories will be with us forever. But it doesn’t mean that the rest of our life must suck because we’ve...

Reframing is critical in healing from trauma. As I said in this interview, "If I'm going to live for decades more after my trauma, it's not useful to just think of how it destroyed me. It's not going to allow me to be successful in any aspect of my life. So I have to shift how I look at my experiences so that they don't hold me back."

Everything changed the moment I was able to start focusing on the gifts I've received from my trauma. Instead of focusing on all that I lost from my trauma, I focused on the strength, resiliency, and compassion I've gained, and it's not an overstatement to say that it transformed my life.

It's not useful for me to carry around the idea that my traumas only caused me pain and suffering. When I did, I was depressed, bulimic, promiscuous, and suicidal. But when I started focusing on what I've gained from my trauma, I was able to see a way out of my suffering.

I also said, "This is a very harsh world that we live in and none of us will escape its wrath. We...

When I focused on all that I lost and all that would no longer be because of my trauma, I suffered. I felt like I was stuck and that I would forever suffer because of my trauma. Nothing changed until I changed the meaning behind my suffering, until I changed my story. It’s the only thing I have control of now that my trauma is in the past. 

In this video, I talk about reframing, changing our perspective. We cannot change the fact we experienced our trauma, but we can change how we think about our trauma. Even though gaining positive coping mechanisms and setting goals for moving forward were important in my healing journey, I kept slipping back into old patterns whenever thoughts from my painful past reemerged. Everything changed the moment I decided to change how I thought about my trauma. 

I discuss how important listening to the stories of people who experienced immense suffering was in helping me break the negative thought patterns I had on repeat in my mind....

The words we use to talk to ourselves matters. That’s why in this video I discuss how destructive it can be when people minimize their pain by comparing their trauma to the experience of others. It can trap them in a cycle of thoughts that prevent them from moving forward.

This is why much of the work I do with my clients involves helping them to rewrite their story. You can change the way you experience life by making minor shifts in the way you tell your story. 

I’d be honored to help you rewrite your story. Learn more about my healing journey and how I can help you on yours: serotinouslife.com/coaching-programs

“Will I ever forget my trauma?” is a question I have been asked a lot lately. In this video, I discuss why our brain won’t ever let us forget our trauma and ways that I have handled painful memories when they resurface. Hopefully it will give you ideas on how to handle memories from your past when they intrude into your present life. 

Learn more about my healing journey and how I can help you on yours: serotinouslife.com/coaching-programs