HOW TO HEAL FROM CEN: 1. Get to know you: learn your own preferences, plan unstructured time for just you, journal, follow your curiosity. 2. Speak kindly to your inner child: “your feelings are valid” “it’s ok to feel this way” “I am safe”

3. Practice expressing your needs: you may be shut down or numb so this may be difficult— that’s ok. Take small steps. “I need a break” or “I can’t do that” are beginning steps.

4. Soothe yourself: people who’ve experienced CEN didn’t get the soothing needed to develop emotional regulation as children. Practice doing things like: going on a walk, making art, self touch, yoga, or anything else that feels calming when stressed.

We often come through trauma w/ a commitment to stand up for others who're struggling, no matter what it takes. ...which often runs headlong into our fear & avoidance of conflict & attention, ALSO the result of us having endured trauma. Trauma recovery is full of paradoxes.

There’s no soundscapes of the sound of rain and a snuggle buddy’s shallow sleepy breaths and I need that to change.

Sleep is the love hate relationship of my life

Trauma impacts neuroception: the ability to know if a situation is safe or dangerous. Ex: Trauma survivors interpret scowls or anger in facial expressions that are neutral.

Repetition ReWires The Brain Repetition ReWires The Brain Repetition ReWires The Brain Repetition ReWires The Brain Repetition ReWires The Brain Repetition ReWires The Brain Repetition ReWires The Brain Repetition ReWires The Brain What. Are. You. Repeating?

I’m a faggot (female faggot)

In trauma recovery, we gotta work to unlearn sh*t we saw modeled & had reinforced for YEARS-- & to learn stuff, like self-compassion & staying grounded, that we were NEVER taught. We don't learn or unlearn anything overnight. Be patient & realistic-- we want recovery to stick.

Certain "little" things can trigger the hell out of complex trauma survivors. Someone reading a message but not responding right away can totally trip that "I'm in trouble/I'm about to be abandoned" reflex-- & once we're in that headspace, it's EXTREMELY tough to pull out of it.

The vagus nerve is a nerve that plays a key role in your mental health. 8 FACT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE VAGUS NERVE:

The more you heal, the more clear the normalized dysfunction in society becomes. Once you see it you can’t unsee it and it becomes difficult to participate in it.

Sometimes the ‘strong child’ becomes the adult who has learned to not express their needs.

I think this will be validating if you were an introverted child or were told by a parent that they “never had to worry about you.”