Maybe Depression Isn’t a Disease — It’s the Weight of What You Survived
Living with the aftershocks of childhood complex trauma (CCT) makes it simple to believe you’re depressed. You feel trapped. Unmotivated. Heavy. Sometimes hopeless. When you consider the usual lists of “depression symptoms,” they seem painfully familiar: One is tempted to accept the narrative we’ve all been told: that these symptoms indicate a chemical imbalance. That […]
How Daoist Medicine Identifies Patterns of Illness
Symptoms are only the surface. The actual narrative is deeper. Imagine two people entering a clinic, both reporting headaches. “It’s worse when I’m cold,” claims the first, “It feels like a tight band pinching my head.” The other says, “It feels like pounding heat behind my eyes, worse when I’m irritated or agitated. An identical […]
Bridging Two Worlds: How Daoist Healing Complements Trauma Theory
When I started working on this project, I didn’t realize I’d be establishing a bridge between two very distinct systems of thought. I believed I was only organizing what I had acquired—what had benefited me, what I’d observed that seemed to benefit others. But at some point it became obvious:This is not only a trauma […]
What Causes Disease? A Daoist Perspective
It’s not random. And you’re not to blame. We’re taught to view disease like bad weather—something that simply appears and spoils the day. You’re okay one minute. The next, you have a headache. Your digestion could suffer. Or perhaps you’re unexpectedly worn out, anxious, hurting, breathless, whatever. What about the explanation? “It just happens.”“Genetics explains […]
When Being Yourself Wasn’t Safe: How Relational Trauma Teaches Self-Rejection
One of the most agonizing and ignored effects of childhood complex trauma is the quiet, insidious way it teaches you to reject your identity, to reject who you are. Not by violence or explosive outbursts but by little, consistent messages that who you are is somehow wrong. Overly sensitive. Overly emotional. Overly needy. Excessive. Or […]
Could Your Depression Be Linked to Childhood Adversity?
Depression is more than just sadness.It’s the dull pressure on your chest first thing in the morning.The disinterest in activities you once valued.The feeling that you’re here, but not quite here. At times, it resembles checking out.Other times, it seems as though one’s navigating life from within a deep fog.Still other times, it looks like […]
What Is Relational Trauma? Why It’s So Hard to See—And So Important to Name
Most people’s idea of trauma is of large, dramatic events. A natural disaster. An accident. A furious outburst. Something clear, urgent, and intense. But for many of us—especially those of us dealing with the long-term consequences of childhood complex trauma—our trauma wasn’t any of those things. No one struck us. Or they might have, but […]
Through the Darkness: Why Facing the Shadows Changes Everything
I have been watching a Korean series called “Through the Darkness.” It tracks one of the earliest criminal profilers from South Korea as he develops insight into the minds of serial killers. He must enter some very dark places in his work—both inside his own psyche and those of the people he’s studying. Most striking […]
The Missing Link: How Trauma Theory Completes the Daoist View of Emotional Imbalance
For almost 25 years, I ‘ve been studying the Daoist healing arts and Chinese medicine. For most of that period, I’ve felt this persistent sense that things didn’t add up. It’s a fantastic system. Ancient, graceful, and intuitive. Its depth still astounds me as it charts the human experience. Still, there has been one thing—this […]
How to Use Yin-Yang Theory for Self-Assessment: Are You Running Hot or Cold?
Let’s begin with something easy: Are you constantly chilly? Or do you sweat like mad and heat up quickly even when it’s not really warm outside? Many individuals are unaware that these tiny idiosyncrasies reveal much about what is happening inside them. In the Daoist healing arts, they’re signals rather than something random. They’re hints […]