EPISODE 193: The Parent's Bizarre Obsession: From Abuse to Transitioning & Becoming Like Their Daughter | Dr. Taelor's Story

Okay, so I will say that complex trauma is extremely complex, right? Like for me, it is as complex as it gets.

I started sharing my story.

Let's just kind of go back to SOS and kind of how that started because it kind of brings you back a little bit.

So you found me through Survivors Overcoming Silence, where it's kind of my trauma advocacy work.

I'm a doctor of occupational therapy, but I'm also a trauma survivor.

And I found this subsection within my doctorate of childhood trauma and developmental trauma and some holistic interventions like mindfulness, a little bit more of like the spirituality part of it to help people reconnect back to themselves and also self-regulation, And then also I was looking into programming with adults on how to work with trauma survivors because the systems that we work in just really are not set up for supporting survivors and not trauma sensitive.

So my personal life definitely inspired my work.

And so I started out being... a little bit hesitant to share things like it was about six years ago when i started and even when i first started like i was just barely like what is a victim what is a survivor like i was i feel like when you found me was when i first started using my voice and stepping behind videos because it was always like this perfectly curated like all the color schemes and definitions and empowering you but there wasn't a face behind it right or like every once in a while there'd be a picture but i wouldn't say too much and so there was still a part of me i feel like that was hiding back then and it wasn't because i was ashamed but it was because that as a professional, I felt like I had to be so different, right? Like I'm board certified.

I, you know, I have all these ethics and guidelines to follow.

And like, what is, how much of sharing your story is professional or not? And actually when I first shared my story, on the OT for Life podcast.

It was a very professional audience.

And I remember the day after I recorded it, it was a good friend at the time.

She'd waited for me for a couple of years to be ready back when I was an OT like Instagram girl way before I even started Survivors Overcoming Silence.

And I remember just like sobbing and was like, I'm not ready.

What's everyone going to think about me? Oh, my gosh.

And I was just like having a really hard time.

And then it was a really good episode and got huge response and started getting professionals into being like, wow, like we need to hear the human side of the professional.

And so that's kind of how it started.

You mean

vulnerability was like relatable? Yeah.

Well, and I was I was so worried, right? Because like, at some point, too, I even had my like, the American Occupational Therapy Association was following me.

And like, at conferences, they would engage with me.

So, you know, I'm like, well, I'm not doing anything wrong.

And I personally knew I wasn't doing anything wrong.

But I have had people being like, well, that's not professional to share that openly about your trauma.