by Arien Smith | Jul 7, 2020 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Self Love
There was a viral post that went around Facebook a few months ago, about how it was harmful to say “Trauma is not your fault, but healing is your responsibility.” That phrase had always rubbed me the wrong way, but I didn’t know why until I was a part of that...
by Arien Smith | Jun 30, 2020 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Powerful Coping Strategies
Psychogenic pain is when we feel pain that isn’t caused from a physical source (like a cut, bruise, virus, inflammation, etc). It’s essentially when our brain interprets that we’re in pain, but there’s no direct cause of it. At least, not a visible one. Psychogenic...
by Arien Smith | May 5, 2020 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma
Ah, dissociative identity disorder—one of the most misunderstood trauma disorders out there! Most people have heard of it before (perhaps under the outdated name “Multiple personality disorder”)…but many of these accounts are misleading or stigmatizing. So,...
by Arien Smith | Apr 23, 2020 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma
The phrase “I’m triggered” is certainly popular on social media…but how many people fully understand what emotional triggers really are? What it’s like to live with PTSD? To worry trauma memories could hit at any moment? All PTSD and emotional triggers are a serious...
by Arien Smith | Jan 30, 2019 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Peace Through Acceptance
You never have to forgive your abuser. You never have to forget or deny what you went through. If you want to share your story publicly, go ahead. If you want to hate the people who hurt you, you have every right. Don’t listen to the people who say “forgive and...
by Arien Smith | Jan 23, 2019 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Peace Through Acceptance
Your past lives in you—you don’t live in the past. Trauma and abuse memories, like anything significant in life, sticks with us. There’s no shame in feeling like your past follows you around, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to handle either. Many of us survivors...
by Arien Smith | Jan 9, 2019 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Powerful Coping Strategies
Winter can be such a tough season. The cold, the overcast, the lack of desire to go outside…or even get out of bed. Talk about the winter blues! My productivity, focus, and energy all drop by at least 40% in the winter, but it used to be at least 70%. I’d barely...
by Arien Smith | Jan 2, 2019 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Prosperity Path
Glad 2019 is here? I think we’re all ready to move on from last year. It’s a time for new growth and happiness. Joy is a great goal to go after. In fact, it’s the foundation for my work…but that doesn’t mean it is immune to being unbalanced. It’s possible to be...
by Arien Smith | Aug 15, 2018 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Heal with Mindfulness
We can’t just choose happiness, especially after surviving abuse and living with PTSD. But this can be disheartening. If you can’t choose happiness, how do you start to love life? How do you begin to feel good? A love for life is still something you can experience....
by Arien Smith | Aug 8, 2018 | Ending Mental Illness Stigma, Self-Empowerment
How do you improve yourself after going through so much hardship? What does it even mean to be a better person, especially after surviving abuse? Trauma impacts us. It causes us to place judgements on others. We’ve become slow to trust. And when we think of being the...
