One HUGE challenge for survivors it TRUST.
How can we trust others when we have learned that trusting others meant that your trust was betrayed in one of the most brutal and painful ways possible – sexual abuse?
I trusted that my grandfather loved me and would treat me as the precious child I was. Instead, he used me for his own sexual satisfaction and his lust for power over another human being, no matter how small or helpless.
I stumbled across a picture of my grandfather this week.
It took my breath away.
I had avoided looking at the face of my abuser for years and years.
But there he was, kneeling down beside me in the rain smiling up at the camera.
And there I was, so small, so tiny and breakable.
The little girl victim inside me
recognized herself in that shy,
vulnerable child
And wept.
© Denise Bossarte
Brené has studied trust as part of her work on Shame and Empathy. She has a lot of important things to say about trusting yourself before you can trust yourself.
Dr. Brené Brown: The Anatomy of Trust on Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations podcast.
SUPERSOUL SESSIONS: THE ANATOMY OF TRUST| SuperSoul Sessions | Oprah Winfrey Network
