Survivors Blog
Trauma-Informed Healing Through Nervous System Awareness
Using embodied nervous system attunement to help people recognise, regulate, and return to themselves with dignity and care. My understanding of nervous system states began very early in my life. After a near-death experience as a young child, my body seemed to pay close attention to the world…
The Bridge Between Chakras, the Vagus Nerve, and Interpersonal Neurobiology
Have you ever sensed that science and spirituality might be describing the same truth in different languages? I’ve often reflected on how the vagus nerve, the chakra system, and Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB) all seem to meet at the same intersection — where energy, emotion, and connection flow…
When the Body Knows Before the Mind
Understanding fainting, fear, and the wisdom of the vagus nerve Someone once told me they believe they faint in the presence of evil. To some, that might sound far-fetched or even dramatic — but to me, it made perfect sense. I believe there’s truth in it, though perhaps not in the way it first…
The Opposite of TRUST: A Mirror We All Must Face
Trauma-informed practice isn’t just about understanding others — it’s about choosing how we show up in every interaction. Every day, in every conversation, we have a choice: To walk the path of alignment, compassion, and light — or to fall into the unconscious patterns that perpetuate harm. Even…
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…
