laundry list trait for we became reactors instead of actors the first time we read this trait, we probably have no...

This is me speaking to myself.

The first time we read this trait,

we probably have no damn clue what it actually means.

But over...

Sorry, I don't know why this is making me, giving me the giggles.

But over time, it becomes clear that this trait is really the heart of it all.

Our unresolved childhood wounds hijack the way we move through life.

Instead of responding to what's actually happening in the present, our nervous system reacts as if the past is still unfolding.

We're not acting from choice. We're reacting from survival. Here are some of the ways, main ways that this shows up in our lives.

Emotional flashbacks and getting triggered. Instead of responding

from the present, we find ourselves hijacked by old survival states. A small comment,

look, or tone can send us back into the terror, shame, or rage of childhood, and suddenly,

we're reacting like it's then, not now.

These reactions often feel overwhelming and confusing because the intensity doesn't match

the current situation.

Role playing masking.

We slip into old roles or people pleasing scripts rather than showing up authentically.

Whether it's the scapegoat, the golden child, or the peacemaker,

we react by performing a part that once kept us safe instead of acting from our real adult self.

The tragedy is that it can keep us trapped in relationships where we're loved for the role,

but not for who we actually are. Numbing and compulsivity. When feelings feel

...