Rough childhood?

I work with women in transition from a life of homelessness, addiction, and sometimes incarceration as they rebuild their lives. I hear story after story of the rough childhoods they endured. Many have high ACE scores. These difficult childhood experiences have a long term effect on health, and a correlation with substance use disorders.

Why is this information helpful? Because it is so easy to buy into victim consciousness - what was done TO me - to assign blame, and to abdicate the power we have to change the way we process interactions within the world. Healing our past includes honoring it - and then claiming our power and moving into a new way of thinking.

We may be powerless over our past, and perhaps over the cmfort-seeking and coping behaviors that resulted in addiction - but we are NOT powerless over our lives. The first step is becoming aware and admitting that we are stuck.