A Letter to Trauma Survivors
From Clinical Director of AbuseConsultants.com
Kathy Broady, LMSW-ACP

Why do I have this consulting service?

I have worked with trauma survivors and their loved ones for nearly 20 years. During this time, I have come to appreciate the depth of pain, the atrocious injuries, the years of dysfunction, the heartbreaking losses, and the overwhelming grief caused solely from severe childhood abuse. I have seen the sweet faces of abused children – they are so tiny and innocent, yet their torture has been incomprehensible. I have heard the heart-wrenching cries of mothers whose children were stolen – their’s is a nightmare of deception by perpetrators. And this purposeful destruction of children – it leads to a sorrow beyond words.

My utmost admiration goes to the ones who have fought against these evils on the very front line. Because of your courage to defy the most vicious cruelties of this world, I dare to join you and participate in the fight against the destruction of our children. I will continue to support and encourage such brave souls who have chosen to tell about the hidden atrocities. I absolutely admire those that refuse to continue years of destruction onto the next generation of children.

Deliberate crimes of abuse must be stopped. Innocent lives are being destroyed. The cost to individuals, to families, and to society is just too huge to ignore. This war is ugly. It is even dangerous. Fighting against child abuse can leave people nearly beaten to death. Nonetheless, it is not in vain. I have seen many tiny sparks of tortured life grow and blossom even from that most horrid starting place.

Yes, I have seen people move past that horrible, traumatized dying place. I have seen their flickers of life and joy flourish to become a daily reality. I have seen the most tattered souls offer beautiful bits of comfort to the shattered soul sitting beside them. I have heard poetry and heart-filled music that makes a roomful of everyone burst into smiles. I have seen sparkling eyes and bouncy steps as children run in playfilled laughter. I have seen healing evolve even after everyone else had given up.

The journey required to heal from childhood trauma is tangled, incredible, painful, exciting, torturous, exhilarating, exhausting, and rewarding. My hat goes out to anyone that chooses to heal from their trauma, and to anyone who chooses to stand supportively beside a trauma survivor. For all of these heroes, the healing journey is beyond difficult. It is grueling, agonizing, and unfathomably consuming of enormous amounts of energy, time, and resources. It seems to take as much strength to survive the healing process as it did to survive the original abuse itself.

Yet these survivors, these amazing people, continually demonstrate an insatiable need to find healing, comfort, freedom, truth, and peace. Their need is so strong and so compelling, that these brave souls seem required to travel this road, whether they quickly reach their goals or not. I wonder: How have they survived the sheer ugliness of the torture and kept such precious beauty in themselves? Every single time a trauma survivor brings laughter and joy to my day, I am reminded of the strength and the pure resilience of life. I feel love in a world full of hatred. I am reminded how I believe that good can prevail. I am reminded that there is hope. I see their healing, their comfort, their freedom, their truth, and their peace. Yes, trauma survivors are truly amazing people.

And, their road is long – very long. It’s often a lonely road, as most of the others in the world can’t seem to tolerate the intensity, the pain, or the confusion for very many days. Step by step, day after day, I encourage and support each and every one of you survivors out there to stay on your journey to a safe and meaningful life. The road does lead to healing. There is comfort. There is freedom. There is truth, and there is peace. Your pieces may still be scattered everywhere, but your life’s puzzles can be solved on your journey. Stick with it. Life really can be beautiful. It can be worth it.

Healing is a process that can span the course of years, especially when the abuse was severe. Because I understand that fulfilling the healing journey is a very long, lonely, and difficult process, I want to offer AbuseConsultants.com as an additional option for those survivors who need support and understanding. I will help to put the shattered pieces back into place.

Thank you for coming to this site. Thank you for reading and informing yourself about this urgent and devastating criminal situation. Please feel free to browse around the site as much as you like. Come back often, as we will be continually adding new components for many months to come. Our goal at AbuseConsultants.com is to make this resource as comprehensive and helpful as possible. We want to make a definite impact on the stopping of child abuse.

I stand for the children.

Sincerely,

Kathy Broady, LMSW-ACP
Clinical Director, AbuseConsultants.com