Forgiveness Is For YOU - Overcome Trauma Through Forgiveness

Friends,  What does it look like to feel safe again after experiencing church hurt? In this episode, we continue the conversation on healing from spiritual wounds by exploring a path forward, one that is honest, and rooted in encounter with Jesus in the Sacraments of the Eucharist and Reconciliation. Through personal testimony and reflection, we look at how the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Recon...

Friends,  In this episode Trauma-informed consultant and Neurosomatic Intelligence Practitioner Cendrine Hosoda shares her story of growing up in an evangelical church community in Switzerland where her father, a respected church elder, used Scripture and spiritual authority to control and manipulate his family. With courage and honesty, Cendrine reflects on what it was like to live inside a faith...

* Content Warning* This episode contains mature themes and is not appropriate for minors. Friends, In this vulnerable and sobering episode, I visit with Father John Michael Paul, a Catholic priest who discovered that the founder of his religious community had a decades-long history of sexual abuse.  For someone who spent decades serving as a priest and leader in his community, the betrayal was spi...

Friends,  In this episode of the ongoing series on spiritual abuse, I sit down with Catholic Counselor Paul Fahey to explore a subtle but deeply impactful layer of harm: the abuse of conscience. Many of us were taught to “follow our conscience,” but few of us were ever taught how a conscience is properly formed — or how it can be manipulated. When spiritual authority bypasses freedom, pressures co...

Friends,  In this episode, I welcome Sr. Mary Stephen, founder of Restorative Catholic, to explore a restorative path forward for trauma survivors within the Catholic tradition. Sr. Mary Stephen shares how her vocation within a vocation led her to integrate somatic healing with Catholic spirituality, creating spaces where wounded hearts can safely encounter healing from the inside out. We discuss...

*Content Warning* This episode contains content not suitable for minors. Please listen with discretion.  Friends,  In Episode 8, Catholic Therapist and mom, Lisa Leopold, and I discussed her experiences as a postulant in a religious community, and how the misinterpretation of the vow of obedience caused her and other sisters in the convent to experience spiritual abuse. In this episode, Lisa bring...

Content Warning: *This content is not appropriate for minors, so please use a headset or listen in their absence. This episode discusses experiences of spiritual abuse within the church. While we approach this conversation with respect for the Church and for religious vocations, some of the themes may be difficult for listeners who have experienced spiritual trauma. Please listen at your own pace...

Friends,  In this opening episode of a new series, I begin a much-needed conversation about spiritual abuse: what it is, how it manifests, and why so many suffer in silence within church communities. Drawing from Pope Francis’ definition and addressing the dangers of clericalism, I explore how manipulation of conscience, misuse of authority, and distorted interpretations of Scripture can wound the...

Friends,  In a culture that often equates success with wealth and possessions, author and former special education teacher and school administrator Rosemary Olender invites us to rethink inheritance altogether. In this episode, we explore how character and forgiveness form a legacy that outlasts money, status, and material goods. Rosemary shares how forgiveness is not only a personal healing pract...

*Content warning* - Content not suitable for minors. Please listen with discretion.  Friends,  Many of us feel skeptical when someone says they’ve heard God or encountered Jesus in a tangible way. And yet, at the core of the human heart is a longing to be seen, known, and loved, especially in painful places. What happens when God breaks into a life marked by deep childhood trauma? In this episode,...

Listener Note: This episode includes a personal story involving abortion and emotional trauma. The conversation is approached with care, compassion, and a focus on healing. Please listen at your own pace and tend to your heart as needed. Friends,  In this episode, I am joined by Brittany Poppe, who vulnerably shares her story of experiencing abortion at age seventeen, the emotional and spiritual a...

Friends,  Finding a therapist who truly “gets” you can be challenging, especially if you’ve experienced both painful and healing moments in therapy. In this episode, I’m joined by Clinical Psychologist Dr. Matthew Breuninger to explore what creates safety in the therapist-client relationship, why belonging is essential to healing, and how our relationship with God the Father can shape the therapeu...

Friends, In this episode of Forgiveness Is for YOU, my guest, Mandy Horne shares how a medical crisis became the turning point that exposed an abusive relationship, revealed unexpected protection, and opened the door to a new calling in nursing. While recovering in the ICU, Mandy experienced both betrayal and God's grace through family, friends, strangers, and quiet moments where Christ made His p...

Friends,  In this first episode of Season 3 of Forgiveness Is for YOU, I sit down with my husband, Steve Silva, to reflect on how life’s challenges shape us, stretch us, and invite us into deeper freedom through forgiveness. After a Christmas retreat spent in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, I share how the Lord has been clarifying the mission of this podcast, my coaching practice, and our new...

Friends, As we bid farewell to 2025 and step into a new year, I revisit another favorite conversation from Season 1: Overcoming Resentment in the Forgiveness Process. The holidays have a way of stirring old wounds and unresolved emotions, and resentment often rises to the surface when we least expect it. As you listen to this episode, consider what it will take to let go in 2026. In this reflectio...

Friends, In this episode of the Holiday Reflection Series, I'm revisiting one of the most-loved episodes from Season 1: What Forgiveness Is Not. The holiday season can stir up old wounds, from family dynamics, absence, grief, to unresolved tension. Many of us feel pressure to “just forgive,” even when our hearts aren’t ready. This episode offers gentle clarity: a grounded look at what forgiveness...

Friends, This episode is the first of three in a Holiday Mini-Series on Reflection, Healing, and Choice. As we enter the holy days of Christmas and prepare to bid farewell to 2025, I'm revisiting one of the most listened-to episodes of the Forgiveness is for YOU podcast: Self-Forgiveness & Internal Family Systems (IFS). The holidays often invite reflection, and sometimes a tendency to be hard...

Friends, In this episode, I’m joined by Rosa Alejandro, founder of The Intentional Christian Woman and a woman whose story beautifully embodies grace, courage, and new beginnings. Rosa shares her journey through what she calls her “prodigal daughter” season, a time marked by stepping away from her faith, experiencing the pain of betrayal, and facing the end of her first marriage. With honesty and...

Friends,  We inherit more than DNA — we inherit stories, beliefs, and wounds. But we also inherit the power to heal them. In this episode of Forgiveness is for You, Dr. Ilene Cohen, LMFT, shares how her grandfather’s legacy as a Holocaust survivor shaped her work in forgiveness and family systems therapy. It’s a conversation about breaking cycles and creating new legacies of love. Dr. Ilene's link...

Friends,  In this episode, my adult daughter, Ashlene Silva Dybus, and I talk about what it was like for her to grow up with me — a mother still learning to heal from the effects of Complex PTSD, and how we’ve both come to see the ways trauma quietly travels through generations.  Together, we explore how awareness, compassion, and forgiveness are helping us reshape our family story, one revelation...

Friends,  What happens when the label that once helped you heal begins to hold you back? In this follow-up to S2E43: Alcohol, the Brain and the Holidays, I continues my conversation with Christie Walker, the Catholic Sobriety Coach, who has been sober for nearly 29 years. What began as a practical talk about staying alcohol-free during the holidays evolved into a deeper reflection on identity, fai...

Friends,  The holidays can be full of joy — but also full of challenges when alcohol is part of every celebration. In this episode of Forgiveness is for YOU, I welcome back Christie Walker, the Catholic Sobriety Coach , to talk about how alcohol affects the brain and how to navigate the season sober, grounded, and at peace. In This Episode You’ll Learn: How alcohol impacts the brain and behavior W...

Friends, When addiction enters a marriage, it tests every promise and every ounce of faith. In this episode, Catholic Mindset Coach and founder of St. Monica's Way, Michele Simpson opens up about her decades-long journey of loving a husband with alcoholism while remaining faithful to her Catholic marriage vows. She shares how she learned to balance compassion with boundaries, find peace amid chaos...

Friends,  In this powerful episode, we explore an alternative to traditional therapy that may just resonate more deeply than you expected. I’m joined by Adrian and Shae Misiak, graduates of the Catholic Psych Institute’s Mentorship Program — a model that blends psychology and faith in a revolutionary way. Adrian and Shae share the story of their five-year marriage and their discovery of accompanim...

Friends, Have you ever wondered how to forgive someone when the memory of what they did still feels fresh? In this episode, I explore what it truly means to forgive what you can’t forget. Drawing from the insightful forgiveness work of the late psychologist Dr. David Stoop and his book Forgiving What You’ll Never Forget , I share personal stories from my own healing journey through trauma, faith,...