About
Crystal Arber is a trauma therapist, educator and speaker in the field of PTSD. She uses EMDR as her form of treatment. She works with military, police, first responders, survivors of childhood trauma, critical incidents, youth and families.
Category: Childhood Trauma
What is Dissociation?
Dissociation is a phenomena or defence mechanism designed to protect us from threat. It’s a state that one can move into when they sense danger. Sometimes when a person is in a dangerous or threatening situation a person will freeze kind of like a deer in headlights. Once the threat has past so does the freeze response.
Why do we get into dysfunctional relationships that mirror our childhood?
Children idealize their dysfunctional caregivers in various ways. They do this by creating a fantasy of who their caregivers are. They literally tell themselves lies, make up stories in their mind about how wonderful their caretakers are. They exaggerate their caretaker’s strengths to minimize the deficits or abuse as a way to survive the dysfunctional system. They tell stories to themselves about how wonderful their father, mother or caregivers are so that they can be sure to omit the abuse adapt and carry on.
Are you living the life you were programmed to live or the life you were born to live?
Did you grow up in a childhood where you spent the majority of your time taking care of your caregiver(s) needs? Instead of your parents meeting your needs, you found yourself sacrificing your needs to take care of your parents? Your parents were self-involved, more worried about their own needs and wants that you were neglected or ignored? This kind of parenting is known as narcissistic parenting.
are you a functional adult or an adaptive child?
I am the child who had to adapt to the crazy dysfunctional family I grew up in. I did a great job of negotiating the narcissistic parenting I received. I made sure my parent’s sibling, or pet came before me. This seemed to calm the stormy waters which was a regular event, especially if alcohol or substances were involved. I had to figure out when one of my parents was about to rage on me, attack me, or bully me. I was pretty good at figuring out what the raging parent needed, and I was pretty good at staying away or staying two steps ahead of the next storm. Sometimes I couldn’t figure it out, and I paid a price which taught me to get better at reading other people especially my parents. My other parent was vacant. My other parent didn’t know how to take care of me. This parent was too consumed with her partner’s rage.
