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ON FAMILY & MENTAL ILLNESS

Shimmer in the Dark

BY Ashley Anthony

It was a grey midday in Moorpark, California, a sleepy suburb flanked by fertile farmland and soft rolling hills. I parked my brown Honda Accord in front of the tract home my...READ MORE

It was a grey midday in Moorpark, California, a sleepy suburb flanked by fer...

Tags: Child Abuse, Childhood, Family
On the Intimacy of Storytelling

In My Back

BY Camille Gabet Langlois

Based on an autobiographical event, In My Back is the story of a woman who confronts the sexual trauma she experienced as a child, and the subsequent consequences it had on he...READ MORE

Based on an autobiographical event, In My Back is the story of a woman who c...

Excerpt:
“...against child abuse, and that is what made me understand...”
On Whaling & Communal Healing

The Last Hunt

BY Katie Orlinksky

For the Inupiat natives of Alaskan Arctic villages like Barrow, nothing is more important than the bowhead whale. Approximately 20 percent of the population in Alaska is...READ MORE

For the Inupiat natives of Alaskan Arctic villages like Barrow, nothing is m...

Excerpt:
“...drug addiction, sexual violence, child abuse and suicide affect...”
On love and healing intergenerational trauma

Moon Child

BY James Mills

Three generations of women tell the story of Vina Schmitt, self-proclaimed “Moon Child,” while exploring issues of addiction, trauma, mental health, love, and acceptance....READ MORE

Three generations of women tell the story of Vina Schmitt, self-proclaimed “...

Excerpt:
“...physically abused by her stepfather as a child, Vina...”
ON HEALING TRAUMA THROUGH THE POWER OF STORY

An Interview with the Director of "Moon Child"

BY Robyn Carey Sanyal

When Director James Mills first began his short documentary film, “Moon Child,” his intention was not to showcase his family’s eccentricities, but rather to explore his relati...READ MORE

When Director James Mills first began his short documentary film, “Moon Chil...

Excerpt:
“...physically abused by her stepfather as a child, Vina...”
On Collaborative Healing and the Parent-Child Relationship

Who's The Mother? Who's The Child?

BY Melissa Spitz

Our relationship has always been skewed. The lines between parent, child and caregiver are blurred and this moment however unique it seems, is not....READ MORE

Our relationship has always been skewed. The lines between parent, child and...

Excerpt:
“...acting abusive. My role as a child was manipulated often...”
On life before and after loss

Losing My Little Brother

BY Nirrimi Firebrace

I hold the phone from my ear, screaming at her to stop, yelling at her to not tell me, because if I didn't hear the truth, I could exist in this world a little longer—this wor...READ MORE

I hold the phone from my ear, screaming at her to stop, yelling at her to no...

Excerpt:
“...sexually abused me when I was a child (though...”
On Awakening to Psychic Intuition

Return to Wakefulness

BY Regan Caruthers

For the next eighteen years, I lived without conscious awareness of my divine gifts and walked awake in my life without remembering. This sleep was purposeful, and in many way...READ MORE

For the next eighteen years, I lived without conscious awareness of my divin...

Excerpt:
“...abuse he had suffered as a child, which drove...”
On Sleeptalking and Childhood Trauma

While You're Talking In Our Sleep

BY Tanya Marquardt

In the spring of 2014, I thought it would be fun to get a sound-activated recording app and record myself at night. At first the recordings were pretty basic — a word, a littl...READ MORE

In the spring of 2014, I thought it would be fun to get a sound-activated re...

Excerpt:
“...child I had been unable to talk about the abuse...”
On Being Trans and Childhood Trauma

Untangling My Past, Braiding My Future

BY Zaitouna Kusto

“You love sushi too much to ever handle being pregnant,” my partner always tells me. It’s true, but also, I’m a trans woman and don’t have a uterus....READ MORE

“You love sushi too much to ever handle being pregnant,” my partner always t...

Excerpt:
“...because I was severely abused by my parents. The years...”