114 quotes found
“Some survivors can be wary of most people, yet blinded by compassion toward fellow survivors or others who suffer or who pretend to suffer, or exaggerate their sufferings, in order to take advanta...”
“...repeated trauma in childhood forms and deforms the personality. The child trapped in an abusive environment is faced with formidable tasks of adaptation. She must find a way to preserve a sense ...”
“It is dangerous to use our own ability to access non-traumatic memories as a standard against which we judge a trauma victims response.”
“I no longer look to my abusers with any expectation of remorse, or apology or restitution or restoration or relationship. Im at peace, accepting that they wont and cant help me out of the mess they...”
“He doesnt hurt us anymore.Of course he doesn't hurt you anymore, I think. You're not defenseless anymore.”
“The paradox of vengefulness is that it makes men dependent upon those who have harmed them, believing that their release from pain will come only when they make their tormentors suffer. In seeking ...”
“If you have the tendency to repress your anger, you have lost touch with an important part of yourself. Getting angry is a way to gain back that part of yourself by asserting your rights, expressin...”
“If you carry around a lot of suppressed or repressed anger (anger you have unconsciously buried) you may lash out at people, blaming or punishing them for something someone else did a long time ago...”
“Some Survivors think that getting angry is inappropriate and a sign that a person is out of control. Others are afraid of anger, that of others, as well as their own. They are afraid that if they g...”
“Your instincts may tell you that you cant survive if you experience feelings. But they are leftover child instincts. Theyre the ones that first told you to freeze your feelings. They themselves are...”
“As we move away from the old role in which we were helplessly entrapped as a victim, we make friends with the people who affirm us. Their enthusiasm about us mirrors the positive experience we are ...”
“Toxic relationships are dangerous to your health; they will literally kill you. Stress shortens your lifespan. Even a broken heart can kill you. There is an undeniable mind-body connection. Your ar...”
“One Decision Makes All the Difference”
“Throughout my entire miserable childhood I woke at least once a night weeping from overwhelming delight. I did it hungry, I did it after beatings, I did it after the deaths of loved ones.Now you te...”
“Sexual abuse is also a secret crime, one that usually has no witness. Shame and secrecy keep a child from talking to siblings about the abuse, even if all the children in a family are being sexuall...”
“Because we were treated neglectfully and abusively in our young yearswhen we most needed self-love to be mirroredit was difficult to hold ontoWe take up the challenge of learning to love ourselves,...”
“As you recover, you will feel more conscious of your surroundings. Freed from the fog of your pain, fear, and confusion, you will awaken and see the world revealed as never before. You will begin t...”
“Our future can be brighter. We know that with the right help, continued treatment, and support we can potentially aim for partial or full integration. Yet even if this is not possible, whatever hap...”
“Deciding to actively heal is terrifying because it means opening up to hope. For many survivors, hope has brought only disappointment.Although it is terrifying to say yes to yourself, it is also a ...”
“Often feelings of shame, powerlessness, and self-hate are bottled up with the memories, and as the memories come through, these feelings do, too.Yet healing isn't just about pain. It's about learni...”
