Lived Experience Blog
When Truth Becomes Too Inconvenient to Hear: Trauma, the Inquiry, and a Hybrid Model for Justice and Repair
The national inquiry has stalled — and for many survivors, the impact runs far deeper than frustration or disappointment. What we’re witnessing isn’t just politics; it’s trauma being reactivated in real time. When politicians try to control or manage the truth, survivors experience something…
From Collapse to Connection: Understanding the Dorsal Vagal State and the Path Back from Despair
When we talk about trauma, we often speak of fight or flight—but rarely of the quietest survival state of all: freeze…
As Above, So Below
I’ve been reflecting, as I regularly do… Let’s consider the environment. Chaos on the outside, chaos on the inside. Calm on the outside, calm on the inside. Hate on the outside, hate on the inside. Love on the outside, love on the inside. This is how it might work for those of us who have…
Filtering Reality: Attention, Awareness, and the Expanding Mind
In The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley described something extraordinary. Under the influence of mescaline, a naturally occurring psychedelic compound found in the peyote cactus, his brain activity didn’t increase — it decreased — yet his perception expanded. Colours deepened, time slowed, and…
Learning to Say No: Reclaiming Ourselves Through the STAND Framework
How We Learned to Fear “No” From early childhood, many of us were conditioned to equate obedience with love. When we complied, we were rewarded with affection or approval. When we resisted, expressed anger, or said no, we were met with disapproval, punishment, or withdrawal. We didn’t just learn…
Silencing
As I sit down to write, to put down in words the past events and experiences that shaped my present I hear a familiar noise. Every time I peel back a new layer of my story I hear familiar words running through my mind and body, not running, yelling. Old threats, old manipulation and traps. Old…
Duality
How we view the world and the people in it depends on our internal filter. A filter constructed from our experiences and understanding, from the flow or otherwise of our nervous system, and from the surroundings we live in. 2 people viewing the same event will see and experience it in different…
Uncomfortable
We are going to make you uncomfortable. Our truth is going to shake your illusion. Our words and our message are going to raise questions you don’t want to ask, never mind answer. Our vulnerability transforms to strength as you listen, read and understand. Our rawness will surprise you. And I’m no…
Finding Belonging Away From Home
I’ve been reflecting on what it really means to belong — not just to live somewhere, but to feel that deep exhale of “this is home.” Is it possible to truly belong to a place you weren’t born or raised in? Is belonging something we’re invited into through acceptance — or something that grows…
RAS-A-Mataz! Your Brain’s Sixth Sense in Action
Ever walked into a room and felt something was off before anyone said a word? That’s not imagination — it’s your Reticular Activating System (RAS) at work. The RAS sits deep in the brainstem and acts like your inner filter. It decides what information reaches your awareness and what fades into the…