An effect of trauma
Having a record
Carrying a conviction for something you did. The sentence ends and the record does not. Being screened out of jobs and housing. Explaining yourself to strangers with the power to refuse you. Being introduced to new people with the worst thing about you already known. Whatever you have done, the punishment was supposed to have an end date, and in practice this one follows you into every room.
What you did and what you are now are two different questions, and a background check only ever answers the first one. There is no pretending here and there is no writing you off either. People here have records and have built something anyway, which is worth knowing from someone other than a resettlement leaflet.
It can sound like
If any of those sentences live in your head too, you are in good company here.
Nothing on this page is a diagnosis, and nothing here decides what is wrong with you, because nothing is wrong with you. Something happened to you. This page exists so that when you are ready, you can find people who understand it from the inside.
You do not have to carry this alone.
Bridge of Hope Recovery is a free, anonymous, peer-led fellowship for trauma survivors. Meetings run throughout the week by phone, by video, and in person. No cost, no waitlist, no one asking for your real name.