Have you ever thought of the ties that bind you to your family? As children, we receive love, attention and protection from our parents and caregivers and in return we offer them our loyalty for taken care of us. As small children, there is not much else we can offer in the asymmetrical parent-child relationship. …

Invisible Ties That Bind Us Read More »

I will try to tell you what I think of this topic. I was on clubhouse the other day in a room of Senegalese women, the women were sharing the dangers, the fear, the oppression they face in their daily lives as women. So the title of the room was “Why are men afraid of …

Are you a feminist? Read More »

What is the difference between working hard and being a workaholic? Workaholism is glorified in our society and the term is often misused, making it difficult for people suffering from it to know they have a problem. Before childhood trauma research gained momentum in the 1980s and 1990s, there was no understanding of trauma and …

Coping With Trauma: Workaholism Read More »

George Floyd’s murder has made me cry many nights over how senseless and inhumane his killing was. Learning of the killing of Breonna Taylor and many other black people has been soul crushing to say the least. A question comes to my mind in these times, “where is home for me?”. I lived for 20 …

That Time We Moved! Read More »

“We cannot tell what may happen to us in the strange medley of life. But we can decide what happens in us – how we can take it, what we do with it – and that is what really counts in the end. How to take the raw stuff of life and make it a …

Parentification: growing up too soon Read More »

“Surviving is important but thriving is elegant” Maya Angelou In my series of blogs raising awareness on childhood trauma, I will tackle intergenerational trauma. I had scheduled to write and post this some weeks ago but the Coronavirus pandemic sent me into a disregulated and anxious state like many of you. I was reflecting the …

Intergenerational Trauma: How to Break the Cycle Read More »

I remember last year on Mother’s Day, I was researching articles about complicated mother-daughter relationships and did not seem to find any that described my experience. What sparked this Google search? All the beautiful messages I saw on social media from daughters to their mothers. These messages described a relationship I did not know of. …

Behind that Anger is Grief: A mother-daughter relationship Read More »

If we ask the question: How many of you have experienced trauma within yourselves or know someone who has? The answer is everyone (direct experience or knowing someone). To continue raising awareness on childhood trauma, today’s blogpost will focus on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Have you heard of the ACE test? I learnt about ACEs …

What is your ACE score? Read More »

Trauma in Ancient Greek means wound. It can be a single event (death of a loved one, divorce, injury, illness, natural disaster, terrorism, moving to a new location) or repeated traumatic experiences. I will focus on repeated traumatic experiences that happen in childhood, overwhelming the child and pushing them to build coping mechanisms that can …

What is Childhood Trauma? Read More »

“Mend my life!”
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.