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here's a phrase we use in the medical field: "High Functioning."

We use it to describe an alcoholic who still makes it to work. Someone with depression who can still shower and smile. It means: "I'm falling apart, but I'm doing it quietly."

For survivors of childhood trauma, "high functioning" isn't just a clinical term—it's the title of the longest chapter of our lives.

In this episode, host Matthew Hearn examines The Shadow—the decades between childhood trauma and the eventual reckoning. This is Part 1 of a two-part deep dive into the years we spent building a life designed to prove we were fine.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why standing in the light always casts a shadow—and why success often makes the darkness grow
• What "The Fake Normal" looks like and why it's so exhausting to maintain
• The question that haunts every survivor: "If people knew the real me, would they still want me?"
• Why so many trauma survivors become overachievers, first responders, and crisis professionals
• How chaos becomes home when you grew up in chaos
• The brutal truth about achievement that took Matthew 40 years to learn

This episode is for you if:

You've spent decades being "the reliable one" while feeling like a fraud. You've built a successful life on paper but still wake up at 3 AM feeling like a scared kid. You're exhausted from performing and wondering if you can keep it up.

Content Note: This episode discusses childhood trauma and its long-term effects. While not graphic, it may bring up difficult emotions. Listen when you're in a safe space.

Next Episode: Part 2 - The Toolkit and Grace for the Runner

Your Assignment This Week: What's your Fake Normal? What's the performance you've been putting on? What would happen if you stopped? Sit with these questions—and join us next week for Part 2.

Subscribe so you don't miss Part 2, where we open the toolkit and learn to extend grace to the version of ourselves that lived in The Shadow.

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Four Names For Thunder™: Speak Louder Than The Storm™.

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We’ve identified the glitch. Now, let’s analyze the code.

In this week's main episode of Four Names for Thunder, we explored "The Secret"—the childhood survival strategy that kept us silent for decades. We introduced the medical concept of the "Guarding Reflex" to explain why we froze instead of fighting back.

In this Aftershock companion episode, we run a deep-dive analysis on those themes. Using AI-assisted modeling to break down the narrative, we look at the specific cultural and psychological forces that made Gen X the "perfect generation for secrets."

In this system debrief, we discuss:

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• The Guarding Reflex: A tactical look at how your psychological "muscles" locked down around the trauma to prevent further injury—and why they never learned to relax.
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• The "Stranger Danger" Glitch: How the 80s cultural obsession with "white vans" blinded us to the danger inside our own homes.
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• The Latchkey Isolation: Why being "self-sufficient" at age 10 wasn't a badge of honor, but a recipe for isolation.
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• The "Safe Person" Protocol: Practical criteria for identifying who is (and who is not) safe to tell your story to today.
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Mentioned in this episode:

• The "Guarding Reflex" (Medical Metaphor).
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• The "Stranger Danger" Era.
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• The 4 Criteria of a Safe Person.
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Join the System Reboot: Ready to test the "Safe Person" protocol? Join our private community of men working the steps: [Link]

Next Up: On Tuesday, we move to The Shadow—the decades of running that followed The Secret.

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Four Names For Thunder™: Speak Louder Than The Storm™.

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You didn't keep the secret because you were weak. You kept it because you were smart.

Looking back at our childhoods from the safety of our 50s or 60s, it is easy to judge that younger version of ourselves. We ask, "Why didn't I say anything? Why didn't I tell someone?"

In Episode 2 of Four Names for Thunder, host Matthew Hearn—a Director of Clinical Informatics and trauma survivor—explains why silence wasn't cowardice. It was a brilliant survival strategy.

We explore the concept of the "Guarding Reflex." Just as muscles involuntarily lock down around a broken bone to prevent further injury, your psyche locked down around the trauma to protect the family system.

In this episode, we cover:

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• The Guarding Reflex: A nurse’s perspective on why you "froze" instead of fighting back, and why that muscle memory lasts for decades.
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• The Latchkey Generation: How growing up in the 70s and 80s—the era of "Stranger Danger" and empty houses—left us without the language to report abuse happening inside the circle of trust.
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• The Architecture of Silence: Why children trade their own safety for the stability of their family.
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• The First Step: A challenge to "externalize" one small piece of the story this week using the "Safe Person" protocol.
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Key Quote:

"You were the shock absorber for your entire family. You absorbed the dysfunction so everyone else could stay comfortable... That silence was not cowardice. It was a survival strategy."

Resources:

• Subscribe to The System Log on Substack: [https://matthewhearn.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips]
• Join the private Facebook Group: [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61585106797475]

Next Episode: We move to the Second Name: The Shadow—the decades of workaholism, drinking, and running we used to outrun the ghost.

Support the show

Four Names For Thunder™: Speak Louder Than The Storm™.