Walking through Shame

I saw this in my feed right after a post my child made on social media. I’m going to share the gist of what my child wrote, how it relates to this picture, and how in this moment there is shame welling up. I’m going to explain to you how I combat the shame and prevent it from allowing me to further damage my relationships with my children or others.

Now I am not perfect. There are moments here and there still where my initial response is to react from a frightened and abandoned space. It’s just those times are far less frequent, and less lengthy when they do happen. I’m generally able to see quickly that I’m reacting rather than responding.

When I do react first I feel like an imposter and the shame worsens. Because I speak about this stuff a lot. I’m writing about it right now. And, when I cannot perfect it I feel like an imposter. But the truth is I am not. The voice pushing me to be perfect and make everyone think I’m perfect is the imposter. It’s an impossible feat for us all.

I am incredibly proud of my child. The content of the post referenced a fall from healthy living after an abusive relationship, as well as memories of abuse from parents, school bullies, etc. They were letting people know it’s never too late to change your life. They have had a significant weight loss, reversed health issues, and are working on their trauma and triggers every…