The Joy Junkie: The Impact of Our Parents

I was led to the Joy Junkie podcast for an entirely different episode but this one caught my eye. A few times recently in discussing my books, my mom has been brought up. People are very curious as to “What does my mom say?” Well, I’ll tell you she is always given the courtesy to read my work before it is published. My experience and interpretations might not be how she recalls, but she honors that I speak my truth and thinks I am a beautiful writer above all else.

About the episode:

Regardless if your parents were amazing or downright awful, it is highly likely that there are certain things you experienced as a child that have greatly impacted your current reality. And, not necessarily in a positive way. Although we don’t realize it at the time, we take in every bit of information from our parents, form beliefs off of that information, and develop a complex system of coping mechanisms.

So, maybe your mom always picked her body apart in front of you, so you developed the belief that you had to have a “perfect” body in order to be worthy. Or lovable. Or a “real woman”. And this belief led to you clinging to perfectionism around your relationship with your body. Or maybe your dad was constantly absent leading you to conclude that men in your life will abandon you. And now, in adulthood, you find yourself picking romantic partners who aren’t emotionally or physically available or searching for approval from your male co-workers.

Reckoning with the impact of your parents is no small feat and can stir up many uncomfortable thoughts and emotions. But, on the other side of that reckoning is unbelievable healing and freedom. Trust… we don’t dig up this shit for the fun of it. We do it to heal. To move to the other side. To access our worth and our happiness.