“The miracle is this: the more we share the more we have.”
by John Bradshaw
Shame is the motivator behind our toxic behaviors: the compulsion, co-dependency, addiction and drive to super-achieve that breaks down the family and destroys personal lives. This book has helped millions identify their personal shame, understand the underlying reasons for it, address these root causes and release themselves from the shame that binds them to their past failures.
This is not just a recovery book. Among other things, it is a classic book on identifying and working through unresolved family issues. Includes affirmations, visualizations, inner voice and feeling exercises. Strong supporting studies make this a popular book with counselors and other professionals.
The experience of shame—a feeling of being unworthy, bad, or wrong—can be extremely uncomfortable. Shame has the potential to change the way we see ourselves and may lead to long-lasting social, professional, and sexual difficulties.
It’s a little bit of a heavy subject today, but it’s one we have to talk about: Healing our Shame. It’s a subject that crosses my office practically daily in insidious and subversive ways. Shame contaminates our work and our relationships and creates a cycle of binary, either/or thinking. But we can take back our power in our relationship with shame if we work to understand it, relate to it, and use the tools we have that are built in to The Adult Chair! Get ready everybody… we’re going to move through some shame today!
Join Erica and me as we explore the content of Janet Bentley’s new book, Don’t Expect Me to Cry. Janet was so kind to join Erica DeLong and me to talk candidly about her book "Don’t Expect Me to Cry". Janet was courageous in sharing her powerful story about the sexual abuse and neglect she experienced as a child by many abusers, including her own father. She is sharing her story to inspire others to know they aren't alone. What has come of all this? Janet powered through her trauma and founded her non-profit, Show Up for Children; create Courageous Survivors, a safe, online environment for people to learn and share experiences about childhood sexual abuse; join the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network’s Speaker’s Bureau; and become a licensed facilitator of Darkness to Light’s Stewards of Children child sexual abuse prevention training.
*Before tuning in, please be aware that this episode contains stories of sexual violence against children. It may not be suitable for all listeners.
Featuring Brené Brown
Shame is an unspoken epidemic, the secret behind many forms of broken behavior. Brené Brown, whose earlier talk on vulnerability became a viral hit, explores what can happen when people confront their shame head-on. Her own humor, humanity and vulnerability shine through every word.
We have all felt shame at one time or another. Maybe we were teased for mispronouncing a common word or for how we looked in a bathing suit, or perhaps a loved one witnessed us telling a lie. Shame is the uncomfortable sensation we feel in the pit of our stomach when it seems we have no safe haven from the judging gaze of others. We feel small and bad about ourselves and wish we could vanish. Although shame is a universal emotion, how it affects mental health and behavior is not self-evident. Researchers have made good progress in addressing that question.
Visit Scientific American