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How I learned I was an Adult Child - The Tale of 2 Brians

THE LAUNDRY LIST - Common Characteristics of an Adult Child

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BREATHE TO HEAL: A 6-Week Journey of Somatic Release - Get your spot here LIMITED CAPACITY --> adultchildpodcast.com/breathetoheal

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You’ve probably heard of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), but do you know how they shape your life—and how to break free from the cycles they create? In this week’s powerful episode, I’m joined by Dr. Nzinga Harrison—psychiatrist, addiction expert, co-founder of Eleanor Health, and all-around badass—as we unpack how childhood trauma, addiction, activism, and healing intersect.

Nzinga’s story is one of resilience and radical love:

• Growing up in a family touched by both substance use disorder and activism
• Navigating her father’s PTSD and leadership in the Black Panther Militia
• Turning adversity into action through her work in trauma-informed addiction care

This conversation will hit home for anyone navigating the long shadows of childhood trauma, and especially for those of us committed to breaking the cycle for ourselves and future generations.

💡 In this episode, we discuss:

• ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) and PIECES (Positive Childhood Experiences)—and how both shape your healing journey
• The impact of family dynamics, addiction, and racism on mental health
• Nzinga’s personal story of injustice: her brother’s wrongful incarceration and her family’s fight for justice
• Trauma-informed care and why timing is everything when it comes to addressing trauma
• How Nzinga’s work at Eleanor Health is transforming addiction treatment with compassion, equity, and science

New YouTube Video - The Many Faces of Functional Freeze: The Over-Functioning Fixer

⬇️DAMN THE JOIN SHITSHOW - ADULT CHILD HEALING COMMUNITY⬇️

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BREATHE TO HEAL: A 6-Week Journey of Somatic Release - Get your spot here LIMITED CAPACITY --> adultchildpodcast.com/breathetoheal

⬇️DAMN THE JOIN SHITSHOW - ADULT CHILD HEALING COMMUNITY⬇️

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• 4 weekly zoom support groups (Sun 3: 30 pm EST, Mon 8:30 pm EST, Tues 1 pm EST, & Thurs 8:30 pm EST)
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BREATHE TO HEAL: A 6-Week Journey of Somatic Release - Get your spot here LIMITED CAPACITY --> adultchildpodcast.com/breathetoheal

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Dysfunctional families don’t raise kids—they assign roles. In this powerful episode, three sisters unpack the parts they were forced to play and how they’re breaking free.

Andrea sits down with three sisters—Kayla, Mariah, and Jackie—to explore the complex and often unspoken dynamics between siblings raised in the same dysfunctional home. While they shared the same environment, their emotional experiences, survival strategies, and lasting wounds were remarkably different.

Whether you’re the scapegoat, the golden child, the lost one, or somewhere in between, this conversation will leave you feeling seen.

What you'll hear in this episode:

• The different “roles” assigned to siblings in dysfunctional families—and how they shape identity and self-worth
• How unresolved childhood wounds continue to play out in adult relationships
• What it’s like to awaken to the dysfunction as siblings at different times
• The power of individual healing—and the added layer of healing alongside siblings
• Why finding community (like The Shitshow) can be a total game-changer

🎧 Tune in now and be reminded: you’re not alone in untangling the past—and healing doesn’t have to be done in isolation.

New YouTube Video - The Many Faces of Functional Freeze: Why You Can’t Get Anything Done

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How I learned I was an Adult Child - The Tale of 2 Brians

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Read less

BREATHE TO HEAL: A 6-Week Journey of Somatic Release - Get your spot here LIMITED CAPACITY --> adultchildpodcast.com/breathetoheal

⬇️DAMN THE JOIN SHITSHOW - ADULT CHILD HEALING COMMUNITY⬇️

https://theshitshow.mn.co

• 4 weekly zoom support groups (Sun 3: 30 pm EST, Mon 8:30 pm EST, Tues 1 pm EST, & Thurs 8:30 pm EST)
• Support community at your fingertips with discussion boards and chat

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How I learned I was an Adult Child - The Tale of 2 Brians

THE LAUNDRY LIST - Common Characteristics of an Adult Child

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⚠️Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code ADULTCHILD for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com

BREATHE TO HEAL: A 6-Week Journey of Somatic Release - Get your spot here LIMITED CAPACITY --> adultchildpodcast.com/breathetoheal

Blair O'Hara is a Psychotherapist & Reiki Healer specializing in healing inherited generational trauma and clearing mental & emotional blocks to achieve long-lasting health & happiness.

We discuss how to heal intergenerational trauma, Family Tree Pyschotherapy, how unresolved trauma manifests as physical pain, and how the ending of his marriage was the catalyst to his inherited trauma to emerge and subsequent healing journey. and his journey of healing the inherited trauma of his great- grandfather's. And his realization that he had inherited his great granfather's trauma, and his healing journey.

https://www.blairohara.com/

⬇️DAMN THE JOIN SHITSHOW - ADULT CHILD HEALING COMMUNITY⬇️

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How I learned I was an Adult Child - The Tale of 2 Brians

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BREATHE TO HEAL: A 6-Week Journey of Somatic Release - Get your spot here LIMITED CAPACITY --> adultchildpodcast.com/breathetoheal

The Role of Humility in Healing

Humility in trauma recovery isn’t about shrinking—it’s about softening. It’s the ability to face ourselves and our patterns without defensiveness or shame. So often, we expect healing to mean “getting over” something. But what if healing is about learning how to live with the parts of ourselves we can’t fully change? Some things—the body image issues, the fear of abandonment, the waves of rage or shutdown—don’t vanish completely. And when they resurface, it doesn’t mean we’ve failed. It just means we’re human. Real healing begins when we stop asking, “Why can’t I just let this go?” and start asking, “How can I be with this right now?”

That shift takes humility. Not just the humility to say, “I’m hurting,” but also the humility to say, “This might be part of me for a long time—and I can still have a good life.” It’s not weakness. It’s strength. It’s letting go of the illusion that we’ll one day arrive at some perfected state of “healed.” Maybe we never will. Maybe healing is a verb, not a destination. Maybe the work is in allowing space for the mess to still exist without letting it define us. And maybe humility is what lets us stop striving and start accepting—with softness, not surrender.

We were taught to strive for perfection, to hide our pain, to “fix” ourselves so we’d finally be worthy. But this path asks something different. It asks us to meet ourselves as we are. To integrate rather than erase. To stop waiting for some future version of us to be lovable. Humility doesn’t mean giving up—it means showing up. Gently. Again and again. Even when it hurts. Especially when it hurts.

⬇️DAMN THE JOIN SHITSHOW - ADULT CHILD HEALING COMMUNITY⬇️

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How I learned I was an Adult Child - The Tale of 2 Brians

THE LAUNDRY LIST - Common Characteristics of an Adult Child

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⚠️Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code ADULTCHILD for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com

BREATHE TO HEAL: A 6-Week Journey of Somatic Release - Get your spot here LIMITED CAPACITY --> adultchildpodcast.com/breathetoheal

You can’t heal what you’re still afraid to look at. This is about confronting what’s been buried—and learning to stop abandoning yourself in the process.

In today’s episode, Andrea is diving deep into Steps 4–7 of the ACA program. These ask us to face the pain we’ve been avoiding, break dysfunctional family programming, and peel back the layers of protection to finally get back to you.

• How Step 4 helps us reclaim our story by facing patterns, wounds, and protective roles through a “blameless inventory” rooted in curiosity—not shame
• Why sharing your truth in Step 5 breaks the toxic family rules of “don’t talk, don’t trust, don’t feel”—and opens the door to connection and release
• The emotional shift that happens in Step 6 when we move from self-blame to readiness for growth—even when change feels unfamiliar or scary
• How Step 7 invites us to surrender old survival strategies with compassion, not criticism—and begin embracing who we were always meant to be
• Andrea’s reflections on how these steps cracked open her healing in sobriety, and how they continue to shape her recovery today

(In case you didn't hear last week's episode on Steps 1-3, you can here --> The Healing Sequence: Denial, Awareness, Acceptance & Action)

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How I learned I was an Adult Child - The Tale of 2 Brians

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