Emotional and psychological harm

Living with someone whose moods controlled the entire household

Never knowing what version of someone you were going to get. Walking on eggshells. Reading the room the moment you walked in. Organizing your entire existence around someone else's emotional state to keep the peace or stay safe.

If some version of this is part of your story, you already know that the hardest part is rarely the memory itself. It is carrying it in a world that mostly does not want to hear about it. This fellowship exists so you do not have to carry it alone, and so you never have to explain it to someone who has no idea what it means.

What can follow an experience like this

No two people carry the same experience the same way. These are some of the effects that people with this experience often describe. Having some of them, all of them, or none of them says nothing about how real what happened to you was.

Emotional numbness Not depression exactly. Insomnia or feeling unsafe enough to sleep Difficulty falling asleep. Not knowing who to trust Trust that was broken, repeatedly, by people who were supposed to be safe. Feeling responsible for everyone around you The person who holds everyone else together while quietly falling apart. Emotions that feel out of control Reactions that feel disproportionate to the situation. Going on the attack before something bad can happen When the nervous system learned that threat was coming, some people learned to meet it head on. Problems with authority or people in power The original experiences with authority figures, parents, teachers, institutions, abusers, shaping the automatic response to anyone who holds power. Rage or anger that is hard to control Anger that comes fast, feels bigger than the situation, or has caused harm to relationships or situations.

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.

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