"On a summer day in 1990, my neighbor called. She said she was going to an education week at the local university where they offered a week filled with various classes and workshops for the public. She invited me to go with her and I agreed to go.
"There were many classes to choose from and I noticed one on childhood sexual abuse. I felt apprehensive about going to that class but thought I might learn something that could help me. I decided to risk it. . . I was late, so I grabbed a seat near the back. The professor's lecture was already in full swing.
"After being seated, I heard the instructor say."
"If you think you might have been abused as a child, and you actually were, the symptoms you experience will not go away; they will continue to get worse and worse until you deal with the actual abuse problems. 'And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.' (John 8:32)"
"When these words were spoken, a powerful feeling came over me and I knew that this was true for me. As I thought back on the previous several years, I clearly saw how much worse my triggers and symptoms had become. I didn't know what had happened to cause those reactions, but suddenly I knew I HAD to deal with whatever it was, even if I didn't want to. . ."
"Three months after attending the university class on childhood sexual abuse, I started to see a therapist. It wasn't long before memories of my childhood began flooding back. Sometimes the memories returned through nightmares that increased and intensified. Other times they came back through the child parts of me that had been hidden from me prior to receiving therapy." (My Tears Fall Inside, pages 53-54)
When life has been agonizingly painful or we have made bad choices, facing the truth about ourselves, the experiences of our past (and even about the present) can sometimes be extremely painful. In a desperate attempt to avoid that pain, it is not uncommon for us to re-write history and to create our own reality--one that isn't "that bad." The problem with living in that make-believe world is that we cannot progress in that place. The answer to that dilemma is to take the steps necessary to face our pain. When we finally have the courage to face the actual truth about the painful parts of our life, eventually that process leads to becoming healthier and happier. We no longer have to hide behind our fairy tale world and we can see life much more clearly. We are finally free to see life as it really is.
"There were many classes to choose from and I noticed one on childhood sexual abuse. I felt apprehensive about going to that class but thought I might learn something that could help me. I decided to risk it. . . I was late, so I grabbed a seat near the back. The professor's lecture was already in full swing.
"After being seated, I heard the instructor say."
"If you think you might have been abused as a child, and you actually were, the symptoms you experience will not go away; they will continue to get worse and worse until you deal with the actual abuse problems. 'And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.' (John 8:32)"
"When these words were spoken, a powerful feeling came over me and I knew that this was true for me. As I thought back on the previous several years, I clearly saw how much worse my triggers and symptoms had become. I didn't know what had happened to cause those reactions, but suddenly I knew I HAD to deal with whatever it was, even if I didn't want to. . ."
"Three months after attending the university class on childhood sexual abuse, I started to see a therapist. It wasn't long before memories of my childhood began flooding back. Sometimes the memories returned through nightmares that increased and intensified. Other times they came back through the child parts of me that had been hidden from me prior to receiving therapy." (My Tears Fall Inside, pages 53-54)
When life has been agonizingly painful or we have made bad choices, facing the truth about ourselves, the experiences of our past (and even about the present) can sometimes be extremely painful. In a desperate attempt to avoid that pain, it is not uncommon for us to re-write history and to create our own reality--one that isn't "that bad." The problem with living in that make-believe world is that we cannot progress in that place. The answer to that dilemma is to take the steps necessary to face our pain. When we finally have the courage to face the actual truth about the painful parts of our life, eventually that process leads to becoming healthier and happier. We no longer have to hide behind our fairy tale world and we can see life much more clearly. We are finally free to see life as it really is.
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