In this solo episode of The Trauma Educator Podcast, we dive into one of the most misunderstood, yet foundational, aspects of trauma healing: power. We explore how power, attachment, and healthy aggression intertwine in both our nervous systems and our relationships, and why reclaiming power is essential for repair, dignity, and long-term relational integrity.

I break down why power must be proportionally shared in every relationship, and how chronic power imbalances create slow accumulations of harm.

We explore why humans as mammals need access to power for internal safety, boundaries, voice, and authentic self-expression, and what happens when this access is cut off. We look at how, after relational injury, power must temporarily shift back toward the hurt person for true repair to occur, and why forgiveness without reclamation is often premature and bypassing.

This episode also examines the somatic mechanics of the fight response: anger, rage, and healthy aggression. We discuss how these vital protective energies are suppressed (especially in women), how suppressed rage often manifests as depression, and why somatic rewiring requires uncoupling fear from fight so clean, grounded anger can emerge.

If you want to understand where you currently are in your nervous system healing after complex trauma and what your next steps can be, take my Nervous System Healing Quiz → https://www.effiekli.com/quiz

For science-backed tools to help you process emotions on a deep body level, watch my free workshop The Alchemy of Emotional Processing After Trauma → https://www.effiekli.com/optin

And if this episode resonates, don’t forget to follow, subscribe, rate, and share to help us bring trauma-educated conversations to more people around the world.

In this new episode of The Trauma Educator Podcast, I answer some of your questions about trauma, healing, and the nervous system

These are questions you've submitted, and it was an absolute joy to take some time to reflect on them and answer in the following order:

• How can I discern between real and valid needs versus “needs” that stem from a trauma response?
• Is it really possible that something bad happened and the person has no memory of it?
• How do I move toward connection and others when relationships feel so unsafe?
• How can I stop feeling like a victim and step into my power when everything feels hopeless?
• In general, how does one heal from complex PTSD?
• How do I teach my body to feel safe if I don’t even know what safety feels like?

If you want to understand where you currently are in your nervous system healing after complex trauma and what your next steps can be, take my Nervous System Healing Quiz → effiekli.com/quiz

For science-backed tools to help you process emotions on a deep body level, watch my free workshop The Alchemy of Emotional Processing After Trauma → effiekli.com/optin

And if this conversation resonates, don't forget to follow, subscribe, rate, and share to help us expand these trauma-informed conversations and bring nervous system awareness to more people around the world.

In this new episode of The Trauma Educator Podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Jennifer Mullan, a major disruptor in the mental health industrial complex and the founder of Decolonizing Therapy®, a psychological evolution that weaves together political, ancestral, therapeutic, and global well-being. She’s the recipient of Essence magazine’s 2020 Essential Hero Award in the category of mental health and the author of the national best seller Decolonizing Therapy: Oppression, Historical Trauma & Politicizing Your Practice. She's also the creator of the popular Instagram platform @decolonizingtherapy.

Together, we explore how colonization, oppression, and historical trauma have shaped modern psychology and how we can reclaim mental health through ancestral wisdom, community and embodied healing. Dr. Jenn breaks down how diagnoses can be weaponized, why she calls symptoms “expressions,” the role of rage as sacred medicine for both individual and collective liberation, and the importance of grief work.

If this conversation resonates, don't forget to follow, subscribe, rate, and share to help us expand these trauma-informed conversations and bring nervous system awareness to more people around the world.

If you want to understand where you currently are in your nervous system healing after complex trauma and what your next steps can be, take my Nervous System Healing Quiz → effiekli.com/quiz

For science-backed tools to help you process emotions on a deep body level, watch my free workshop The Alchemy of Emotional Processing After Trauma → effiekli.com/optin

In this interview, I’m joined by Dr. Ingrid Clayton, a licensed clinical psychologist, trauma therapist, and author whose work has helped countless people understand the hidden dynamics of complex trauma. Ingrid holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and an M.A. in transpersonal psychology. She’s the author of the best-selling memoir Believing Me: Healing from Narcissistic Abuse and Complex Trauma and of the new book FAWNING: Why the Need to Please Makes Us Lose Ourselves and How to Find Our Way Back.

In this conversation, we explore the fawn response — the often-misunderstood trauma pattern that makes us over-adapt, appease, and lose touch with our authentic selves. We discuss the difference between fawning, codependency, and people-pleasing; the nervous-system mechanics behind this survival strategy; and why body-based, somatic work is essential for true recovery.

We also dive into the role of power in reinforcing fawning, how toxic positivity and spiritual bypassing can block healing, and the vital process of reclaiming the fight response and self-trust after years of self-gaslighting.

If this episode resonates, please follow, subscribe, rate, and share to help us expand this trauma-educated conversation and bring nervous system awareness to more people around the world.

If you want to understand where you currently are in your nervous system healing after complex trauma and what your next steps can be, take my Nervous System Healing Quiz here https://www.effiekli.com/quiz

For science-backed tools to help you process emotions on a deep body-level, watch my free workshop The Alchemy of Emotional Processing After Trauma here https://www.effiekli.com/optin

Welcome to the first episode of The Trauma Educator Podcast where nervous system science, somatic education, and conversations on trauma meet culture and society.

In this opening episode, I explore what complex trauma really is. I talk about how complex PTSD is different from PTSD, why this distinction matters, and how our family systems, cultures, and collective histories shape the nervous system across generations.

I also share a deeply personal story of intergenerational trauma and how it became the moment that push me to want to understand the roots of individual suffering but also the cultural and systemic forces that sustain it.

If this episode resonates, please follow, subscribe, rate, and share to help us expand this trauma-educated conversation and bring nervous system awareness to more people around the world. We'd be very grateful!

If you want to understand where you currently are in your nervous system healing after complex trauma and what your next steps can be, take my Nervous System Healing Quiz here https://www.effiekli.com/quiz

For science-backed tools to help you process emotions on a deep body-level, watch my free workshop The Alchemy of Emotional Processing After Trauma here https://www.effiekli.com/optin