Opinion

If I ask you about childhood trauma, you may readily think of children who were physically abused. But what if that child was berated, put down, or even mocked on a regular basis? This may actually be more prevalent and is equally, if not at times, even more injurious to the child.

What do you wish to do with your life? Did you go for a stable, reliable career or have you chosen something you truly love? It may be hard to muster energy for things in our lives that we feel we settled for. The safe, predictable choice may not always be the one that we have a passion for.

What are your expectations? As events in your life unfold, do you know how to best respond to them before they even happen? If you were punished severely as a child when you made a mistake, you may never admit when you are at fault. Ever. If someone broke your trust in your childhood, you may grow up to never fully trust again. Speaking of childhood, if I ever go missing, please follow my kids. They can find me no matter where I try to hide. You know what they say: Not all who wander are lost. Some are just moms, in Target, hiding from their children.

Do you feel forever tied to things that happened in your childhood so many moons ago? Indeed, your character seems to be determined by events that occurred in your family, does it not? Sure, you learned rules from your parents on how to behave - but you also learned an emotional language, sweet friends.

There are few more crucial tasks in a relationship than to be able to listen properly. If you have been listened to with consideration and compassion, you can remain in touch with what you truly feel and learn to believe in your core self. Speaking of listening, I got a call from a telemarketer. He said he couldn’t understand me. I told him to Press 1 for English.

Do you find yourself repeating dynamics that go in the wrong direction in your life? Do you notice identical patterns of behavior at work or at home? Perhaps you sabotage yourself at work, fearing that others will do it before you. Speaking of work, there’s a new rule: You’re not allowed to work longer than the number of hours you slept the night before.