The Rising Beyond Podcast

What happens when survivors of domestic violence and coercive control enter family court isn’t just anecdotal — it’s documented, researched, and deeply concerning. In this episode of The Rising Beyond Podcast , Sybil is joined by Joan S. Meier, Professor of Clinical Law at George Washington University Law School and founder of the National Family Violence Law Center, and Danielle Pollack, Policy M...

What happens when one parent leans on a child emotionally and you are determined not to do the same? Many protective parents notice it quietly at first. Their child starts worrying about the other parent. They feel responsible for adult emotions. They try to comfort, reassure, or stabilize situations that are far beyond their role. And when you are isolated, overwhelmed, or under constant pressure...

Parenting plans, mediation, and negotiations are some of the most stressful parts of divorce — especially when abuse, coercive control, or high conflict are involved. In this episode of The Rising Beyond Podcast , Sybil is joined by Laura, a family law mediator and co-parenting coach, to unpack what mediation can look like when it is truly child-centered and trauma-informed — and when it isn’t. La...

In this Friday Coaching Corner, Sybil responds to a protective mother navigating ongoing post-separation abuse involving her highly gifted, autistic teenager. The abusive co-parent has repeatedly pulled the child into adult financial and legal conflicts, framing the protective parent as the cause of manufactured crises and positioning himself as the victim and rescuer. Over time, the child has bec...

Custody evaluations tend to bring up two very different reactions for survivors. For some, the idea of an evaluation is terrifying, especially if they have heard stories about how much power evaluators hold and how often survivors feel misunderstood or mischaracterized. For others, a custody evaluation feels like hope. It can feel like the moment they will finally be seen, believed, or taken serio...

Should you keep trying to repair a relationship, or is it time to walk away? If you’ve found yourself repeatedly questioning the level of toxicity in your relationships — with a parent, sibling, friend, or even a new romantic partner — this episode will help you sort through the tug of war inside your body and mind. For many survivors of narcissistic abuse, the end of an abusive marriage doesn’t m...

If you are a protective parent trying to “co-parent” with a narcissistic ex-partner, you’ve likely found yourself awake at night wondering how all of this will shape your child’s future. Will my child grow up to be an abuser? Will my child end up in abusive relationships themselves? Will my ex succeed in damaging our bond beyond repair? These fears often intensify during the teen years, when behav...

What do you do when you’re staring down a new year and your life looks nothing like what you imagined? When you’re navigating post-separation abuse, family court chaos, or the long tail of coercive control, the idea of setting goals or creating a “new year plan” can feel impossible — or irrelevant. In this episode, Sybil talks about how to begin again when you’re stuck in the thought “this is not...

Take a listen to this episode that listeners come back to frequently. If you are a survivor in the battle ground of family court, would you say that your attorney is representing you well? Do you feel heard?   Or maybe you do not have the financial means to even hire an attorney. And so you find yourself going pro se.  Representing yourself in family court.  This can be extremely scary and it is p...

I'm sharing this episode again as it's one that many of you listen to frequently. If your parenting plan is not working or there has been a change in yours or your child’s lives to where the parenting plan no longer reflects the actual needed arrangements for the child, what do you do? If you are coparenting with a narcissist, broaching a change in the parenting plan can feel extremely s...

Enjoy this fan-favorite rerun episode with my guest, Kate Amber. What the heck is coercive control anyway?  If you have experienced domestic violence or narcissistic abuse, you have experienced coercive control.  And it’s likely that you have experienced it in ways and by people and systems that are outside of your romantic relationship. In this episode, I have an expert on coercive control, Kate...

Do you ever feel like you “should” be grateful, especially around the holidays — but underneath, you’re still angry, grieving, or exhausted? You’re not doing anything wrong. You’re being human. This episode explores how gratitude and anger can coexist, why both are valid, and how making room for all of your emotions can actually support your healing after abuse and during post-separation parenting...

What happens when you have every intention of showing up as the best mom possible and then things go awry and you show up as someone that you do not want to be? Do you beat yourself up for days?   We all have bad mom moments no matter how intentional we are in our parenting.  I even share some of my bad mom moments so that you do not feel alone in this. When those bad mom moments strike, there are...

How long do you think it takes for someone to heal after leaving a cult? Coercive control is the underlying tactic of narcissistic abuse relationships, often known as a cult of one. Does it give you more self compassion as you work towards healing when you realize that your healing mimics the healing of someone healing from a cult?   In this episode of The Rising Beyond Podcast I do a deep dive in...

In this final Friday Coaching Corner of 2025, Sybil follows up on a previous episode after hearing from a listener whose story echoes so many others navigating malicious interference in the parent–child relationship. This mom has been enduring post-separation abuse for over two years, including weaponized court orders, ignored therapeutic directives, and a teen who has been heavily influenced by t...

Speaking out about abuse is never easy. For survivors of coercive control and domestic violence, telling the truth can feel like reclaiming your voice and your dignity, but telling the truth often comes with a significant cost: retaliation. In this episode I do a deep dive (and a bit of a rant) into the reasons why a narcissist feels the need to retaliate and the steps that they take to silence yo...

Family court can feel like a battlefield — especially when your ex-partner uses the system as another tool for control. But what if advocacy didn’t have to mean becoming hardened or adversarial? In this episode of The Rising Beyond Podcast , Sybil is joined by Becky Sampson, founder of a subpoena support service and a survivor who turned her own three-and-a-half-year divorce battle into a mission...

Do the double standards that show up in a narcissistic relationship and “co-parenting” relationship drive you crazy? Double standards are a hallmark of narcissistic abuse and are pervasive even (maybe especially) after you have left the relationship. In this episode we explore why someone with narcissism requires these double standards to work in their world and how the larger system allows and su...

In this week’s Friday Coaching Corner, I respond to a mom’s heartfelt question that so many survivors share: “How do I support my children’s relationship with their dad—because the court says I have to—while knowing he is emotionally and psychologically abusing them every week?” This episode dives deep into one of the hardest balancing acts for protective parents: offering emotional honesty and sa...

How do you communicate with someone who continues to abuse you post separation? I cannot stress how important it is to learn how to communicate with your “high conflict” co-parent in ways that will protect you and your mental health in order to better protect your children. In this episode I talk with Jill Kaufman about how she supports those going through a “high conflict” divorce and post separa...

Family court can feel like it’s designed to wear you down. The long waits, the unpredictability, the endless back-and-forth with your ex — it can seem impossible to get through without breaking. But what if you didn’t have to let court define you? In this episode, Sybil shares how survivors can walk through family court with steadiness and strength. Instead of waiting for one big “final win,” you’...

In this week’s Friday Coaching Corner, I respond to a listener who’s six years post–custody loss and doing her best to stay connected with her teen daughter—while being accused of crossing boundaries and “embarrassing” her. This mom wonders: “Am I doing okay? Or am I being walked over by my child and my ex?” It’s a question many protective parents ask themselves when trying to balance compassion,...

Walking into family court is intimidating enough — and then your ex smirks, rolls their eyes, or drops a lie designed to rattle you. On top of that, opposing counsel may throw you questions that feel like traps or come out of nowhere. In this episode, Sybil breaks down how to keep your composure in court when your ex tries to provoke you, and how to handle curveball questions during cross-examinat...

Family court is often the last place survivors expect to or actually find safety, yet for so many, it’s where their battle continues. What if we could do something to change that? I’m talking with Jill Montes and Dr. Ramona Probasco from the Healing While Living Free Foundation to talk about the systemic failures of family court, why survivors often lose their voice in the process, and what can ac...

In this week’s Friday Coaching Corner, I respond to a heartbreaking listener story that highlights just how overwhelming it can feel to keep fighting for your child when the family court system and even your own attorney seem to be standing in the way. This listener’s ex-partner is refusing to comply with the court order requiring their child to participate in family therapy, therapy that could be...