“Survivors of abuse show us the strength of their personal spirit every time they smile.” — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“Honoring all ways we survived our childhood abuse is healing. We were amazing and courageous.” — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“The initial trauma of a young child may go underground but it will return to haunt us.” — James Garbarino Copy Share Image
“Survivors are often incredibly aware and perceptive. What was born of necessity becomes a response that is gentle and understanding.” — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“I'm still not sure if I was a victim or not... and if I was, who was my abuser?” — Eskay Teel Copy Share Image
“We aren't the weeds in the crack of life. We're the strong,amazing flowers that found a way to grow in the most… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“Eldest child of a family is the most neglected and punished ones by their parents. Which is off course a memory in… — Fahad Basheer Copy Share Image
“When you feel caught in the web of childhood abuse, find words to describe it. Write them. Say them. Express them. In… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“Many deeply hidden memories have come flooding back. The important message here though is that it is possible to heal and survive.… — Lynette Gould Copy Share Image
“We are all born same, we are completely cute, innocent, sweet, and we need that reflection of ourselves as little human beings… — Anneke Lucas Copy Share Image
“There is a moment in our healing journey when our denial crumbles; we realize our experience and it's continued effects on us… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“Games where someone wants to touch your body where your swimsuit covers or they ask you to touch their body where their… — Carolyn Byers Ruch Copy Share Image
“In the weeds of childhood sexual abuse, we are the sturdy flowers that kept reaching for a slip of sunshine and a… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“There are many times we think we aren’t able, don’t deserve, can’t imagine, wouldn’t dare, or couldn’t possibly make the choice for… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“You can recognize survivors of abuse by their courage. When silence is so very inviting, they step forward and share their truth… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“You can recognize survivors by their creativity. In soulful, insightful, gentle, and nurturing creations, they often express the inner beauty they brought… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“Political prisoners describe: - extreme physical and emotional torture - distortion of language, truth, meaning and reality - sham killings - begin… — Laurie Matthew Copy Share Image
“I opened my louvres and looked at Comfort, walking in the heavy rain, crying bitterly. I heard mom saying, Anywhere you want… — Michael Bassey Johnson Copy Share Image
“Dissociated trauma memories don't reveal themselves like ordinary memories. Like pieces of a puzzle, they escape the primitive part of our brain… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“In a nutshell, the process they [abusers in a ritual abuse group] use on survivors is designed to: break the will and… — Laurie Matthew Copy Share Image
“Narcissism: It's Primal. No Productive Control of Energy: Seeks constant fresh sources of stimulation and is highly energized running from human-object to… — Lynna Kivela Copy Share Image
“Stuffing our memories might become familiar over the years, but it requires a mental vigilance that separates us from our inner world.… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“If the therapist understands and does not take mistrust as personal affront, the therapeutic relationship can evolve gradually. The client can begin… — Christine A. Courtois Copy Share Image
“Ritualised child sexual abuse is about abuse of power, control and secrecy. Ten years ago many people found it difficult to believe… — Laurie Matthew Copy Share Image
“Those who support such survivors of abuse often find it difficult to hear the reality of those survivors' lives and experience and… — Laurie Matthew Copy Share Image
“... the silent client may be experienced as withholding, oppositional, and sulking or as holding the therapist "hostage" in ways that elicit… — Christine A. Courtois Copy Share Image
“The second factor helping to bring the dissociative disorders back into the mainstream was the Vietnam War. For sociological reasons originating outside… — Colin A. Ross Copy Share Image
“I was increasingly both horrified and sceptical about these memories - I had no recall of these things at all, though I… — Carolyn Bramhall Copy Share Image
“Kaffman (2009) described childhood victimization as a "silent epidemic", and Finkelhor, Turner, Ormrod, and Hamby (2010) reported that children are the most… — Christine A. Courtois Copy Share Image
“The overarching principle of a therapeutic relationship is that therapists should be ever mindful of a variant of the Hippocratic oath and,… — Christine A. Courtois Copy Share Image
“Trust of others is in short supply for many adult survivors, as complex trauma generally involves major relational betrayal. It is, therefore,… — Christine A. Courtois Copy Share Image
“Like Jocelyn, Survivors often think: * That’s just the way I am * I’m not lovable, that’s why I keep having disastrous… — Carolyn Ainscough Copy Share Image
“Coming to terms with incest is not easy. Learning to be a survivor, not a victim, gives new meaning to life” — Lynette Gould Copy Share Image
“When we learn to recognize the unique quality of Memory-Dreams, we are empowered. The abused child within us is using them to… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“Denial is commonly found among persons with dissociative disorders. My favorite quotation from such a client is, "We are not multiple, we… — Alison Miller Copy Share Image
“In general, the more dysfunctional the family the more inappropriate their response to disclosure. Never expect a sane response from an insane… — Renee Fredrickson Copy Share Image
“There are many heartfelt reasons for pushing our childhood sexual abuse to the edge of our lives and one amazing reason to… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“Sometimes, during our healing journeys, those closest to us can’t help even though we all wish it could be that way. Allow… — Jeanne McElvaney Copy Share Image
“By the time Cheryl Hersha came to the facility, knowledge of multiple personality was so complete that doctors understood how the mind… — Cheryl Hersha Copy Share Image
![“In a nutshell, the process they [abusers in a ritual abuse group] use on survivors is designed to: break the will and personality of the person until they become as nothing... with no will of their own...no identity...then they... rebuild the person & shape their will in order to...try and make…” quote by Laurie Matthew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f99/laurie-matthew-31209_abuse-sexual-abuse_in-a-nutshell-the-process-they-abusers-i_1534823.jpg)
