And had to live in a domestic violence shelter for almost a year — Two days after fleeing my angry, alcoholic husband I landed in a Domestic Violence shelter with my children. We hid there for two months until he found us on April Fool’s Day and used the court system to take them from me. The judge didn’t give me anything and…

Part I: Examples from my former husband — Abuse is abuse even when we excuse it with a chuckle, while the abuser attempts to win our favor by acting like a loveable, but unruly child. Things he said “I’m sorry for yelling with you.” My former husband made this faux apology after we had a blowout because of some abusive thing…

Use the cycle of abuse to your advantage — Your worst day of PMS is nothing compared to a Narc throwing a FIT. Having someone agree to something one minute and taking it back the next is just part of communication with a narcissist. They can be sweet(uh, maybe?)when they want something from you, and then when you…

I choose a word of intention — What’s the big deal with choosing a word of the year? You may have heard about people choosing a word of the year. When I first heard of this practice I thought it was just some fad sweeping the internets. To me, a word of the year is a guiding star for my year. I choose to make decisions and…

I’m not going to let it bully me anymore! — Fear of failure and success Every time something good happens with my writing or podcasting I think it’s just a fluke. It can’t be because what I am doing is good enough or that I’m good enough. Once I get through that fear I begin to think that I will never make it. …

My sense of smell is still broken — I walk into the store and smell fresh-baked treats and coffee and then rotten potatoes. I had a tiny whiff of normalcy, just long enough to make me realize how horrible the scent prison I am living in is. Rotten potatoes. That is how my brain chooses to interpret the…

how I keep my work organized — Today I’m going to share my system for planning and following through with my writing here on Medium. I’m a paper and pen kinda girl so don’t read expecting to see any high-tech options, lol. Someday, I might be able to remember to check in with my computer to follow…

Can trauma be a gift? — Triggers are all around me every day but I have learned to live with them in relative peace. Anxiety makes me push myself to accomplish much and keeps me from being able to relax completely. These are both things I am working on now. I am also working on…

A few of the wonderful articles I read here this week — I probably read at least thirty articles here on Medium each week to connect with and support other writers. Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy! Burk shares an article that may shed some light on what is going on here: Reads Are Up But Earnings Are Down, How Can That Be? I have a theory, actually twomedium.com Write Mind Matters is a must-read for any survivors who…