“Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.”
—Nora Ephron, American journalist, writer, and filmmaker
blank text
My name is Denise Bossarte.
I am a poet and an award-winning writer, photographer, and artist. I am a certified meditation facilitator and contemplative arts teacher.
I am an IT professional with a B.A. in chemistry, an M.S. in computer science, and a Ph.D. in developmental neuroscience.
And I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. #MeToo
blank text
My Story
I suffered sexual abuse at the hands of my grandfather.
He was someone I should have been able to love and trust, but instead he used my love and trust against me.
Here I am with my grandfather when I was one year old. © Denise Bossarte
I considered writing about my story for a long time, but for many years I could not bring myself to tell it because like many victims, I was ashamed.
blank text
My Inspiration
I was thrilled when the #MeToo movement began, and the courage of so many women speaking out about their sexual abuse and assault awed me.
Then the story broke about Dr. Larry Nassar, the osteopathic physician for the United States’ women’s Olympic gymnastics team, of how he abused girls and young women for years.
My heart broke for them, and I asked myself …
“How could they ever deal with everything they went through?” Then a small but strong voice inside me said, “You can help. Write your story of healing, and share it for girls and women like these gymnasts.” That was the genesis of my book Thriving and this blog site, Thriving After.
blank text
What You Can Expect from My Thriving After Blog
The goal of this blog is to inspire readers to take ownership of their own healing: to inform readers about where they can go to get help and what they can do for themselves to enable their own healing, and to provide links to resources to facilitate their healing journeys.
I will be sharing details of my story, my abuse, and my healing journey. Some of the things I share will be potentially triggering, but it is important for me to share what happened to me so that you know I understand, deep into my bones and soul, what it means to be a survivor of sexual abuse.
But a lot of what I post will focus on inspirational and challenging things for your healing journey.
I would love to hear from you, so please comment on my post!
I am a poet, photographer, and artist. So you are going to see lots of these things on Thriving After.
They are how I express myself and where I find my inspiration.
blank text
“The truth is not always beautiful, nor beautiful words the truth.”
—Lao Tzu
blank text
Thank you for joining me on my blog!
Please subscribe for an occasional newsletter (not spammy!)
