You Are Becoming: Healing Trauma, Limiting Beliefs & Life After Divorce

Welcome to another episode of Bent Not Broken. Heartbreak and trauma may feel like the end of your story, but here it's the beginning of a bold new chapter. I'm your host, Coach Deborah Griffiths, and this is the space where women rise, rebuild, and rediscover their purpose. Remember this truth. You are bent, not broken. Welcome back to this Bent Not Broken bonus coaching session. Today I'm taking you deeper into the powerful insights uncovered in my conversation with Samantha Mandel, an RTT practitioner, trauma survivor, and a woman who turned her functional seizures into a catalyst for transformation. Whether you're going through divorce recovery, heartbreak healing, gaslighting recovery, or just starting over after trauma, there were so many lessons in this episode worth unpacking. So today I'm giving you some coaching tips that you can apply right now to reclaim your identity, rebuild confidence, and rise stronger than before. Coaching tip number one, name the trauma stored in your body. Samantha reminded us that trauma doesn't disappear, it hides, it buries itself in fear, anxiety, shutdown, self-doubt, perfectionism, emotional triggers, even physical symptoms. For her, unprocessed trauma showed up as PNES, or otherwise known as functional seizures. For many women I work with, it shows up as panic attacks, emotional numbness, binge eating, chronic exhaustion, inability to trust, staying in broken relationships, and fear of dating after divorce. So ask yourself, where is my trauma living in my body? What triggers feel bigger than they should? And what patterns keep repeating after divorce or separation? Naming it is the first step to releasing it. Coaching tip number two, challenge the limiting beliefs you inherited. Samantha explained that limiting beliefs are formed through repetition, often during childhood. Many women navigating life after divorce hold beliefs like healthy relationships aren't available to me. Love after divorce isn't possible. I attract the same kind of partner. I'm not worthy of being chosen, or I have to be perfect to be loved. These beliefs didn't start with you, but they can end with you. Write down one belief that's been holding you back, then challenge it. Where did I learn this? Is it mine or something I inherited? And what is a healthier belief that I want to step into? Healing begins when you rewrite your inner script. Coaching tip number three. Understand that you can reprogram your mind. RTT works because it taps into the subconscious, the place where patterns form, identity develops, emotional triggers live, memories hide, beliefs are stored, and self-worth is shaped. Samantha taught us that you can then learn anything that once felt true. Neuroplasticity means your brain can change. So choose one healthy belief to practice daily. It could be I am worthy of safe and loving relationships. I can rebuild my identity after divorce. I am stronger than my past. Or I deserve a life that feels peaceful. Say it out loud every morning. Your body will follow where your mind leads. Coaching tip number four perfectionism is a trauma response, not a personality trait. Both Samantha and I admitted how perfectionism kept us from starting a podcast, sharing our voices, trusting ourselves, and putting our dreams into action. Perfectionism is often rooted in childhood, especially when love or attention was conditional. So give yourself permission to do things imperfectly. Start now and refine later. Action builds confidence. Fear kills opportunity. Coaching tip number five. Healing requires a decision, a line in the sand. The line that shook me, and you'll hear it in the episode, was this. You have to want it. You have to want it bad enough to do the work. Healing doesn't come from wishing, it comes from deciding. The moment you look in the mirror and say, I don't want to live like this anymore. I want to be happy. I want to reclaim my life. That is the moment your next chapter begins. Say it out loud. I choose to heal. Say it every day until the belief becomes your identity. Coaching tip number six. You are never broken, you are becoming. Samantha said something beautiful during our lightning round. There's always a new you waiting to emerge. No matter what you survived, divorce, emotional abuse, gaslighting, heartbreak, trauma, you are not broken. You are evolving, you are shedding, you are becoming, and you are starting over stronger. If this episode touched you, and if you are navigating life after divorce, or starting over after trauma, or even trying to rebuild confidence after years of putting yourself last, then join me for the Divorce Support Recovery Workshop on Eventbrite. You deserve guidance. You deserve healing. You deserve a life that feels whole, peaceful, and bold. You may be bent, but you are never broken. Thank you for listening to today's episode of Bent Not Broken. I hope that this episode reminded you that even through life's toughest moments, you are bent, not broken. If this message inspired you, please share, rate, review, and subscribe, as it helps us reach more women who are ready to rise and rebuild. And until next time, keep living bold and walking in your purpose.