I met Nicole* in the emergency room at a children’s hospital when she was 17-years-old. She had been assaulted by her 18-year-old boyfriend and would possibly need surgery to repair the broken bones in her arm. This was not the first time he had assaulted her, but it was the most severe. Some of Nicole’s friends and family knew that they argued a lot or thought they spent too much time together, but no one [...]

Traumatic experiences can happen to any of us, whether it’s growing up in an abusive or dysfunctional home or surviving a natural disaster. And, while everyone who has experienced trauma wants to move beyond it, the part of our brain tasked with ensuring our survival can complicate the process, even when we don’t remember the event. In highly stressful or potentially life-threatening situations, our brains activate a fight or flight response. Without even realizing it, [...]