Why Don’t I Know What I Want or Need?
You may have grown up in an environment where having your own opinions or wants led to harm or criticism. If so, you likely learned that adopting the opinions and…
Why Do I Always Doubt Myself?
Self-doubt can feel constant when you grew up in environments where your perceptions, emotions, memories, or opinions were regularly dismissed, criticized, ignored, or punished. Over time, many people learn to…
How Do I Know If I Can Trust My Perceptions?
If you grew up experiencing gaslighting, invalidation, or chronic criticism, it can become very difficult to trust your own perceptions. Over time, many people learn to automatically assume that other…
Why Do I Struggle to Form My Own Opinions?
If you find it difficult to form your own opinions, it may because you weren’t allowed to have your own growing up. For example, when you volunteered an opinion, it…
Why Do I Feel Like I Can’t Trust My Own Experience?
You may feel like you can’t trust your own experiences because you learned growing up not to trust your perceptions. This can happen if you experienced a lot of gaslighting.…
Why Do I Assume Others Are Right and I Am Wrong?
Assuming others are right and that you are wrong is often a trauma response. People with dissociative systems often grew up in environments where they were not allowed to have…
Why Don’t I Know What I Want or Need?
You may have experienced this: someone asks what you’d like or need, and you…don’t know. When you check inside, there’s no answer. It can be frustrating for both you and…
Why Trauma Can Make It Hard to Trust Yourself
Many trauma survivors struggle with chronic self-doubt. You may second-guess your thoughts, emotions, memories, decisions, reactions, or perceptions. Even small choices can feel uncertain or emotionally loaded. You might find…
Why Does It Feel Hard to Trust My Own Judgment?
It can feel hard to trust your own judgment when your decisions, perceptions, or reactions have been questioned, overridden, or dismissed over time. If you learned that your judgment led…
Why Does Dissociation Make It Hard to Trust Internal Experiences?
Dissociation can make it harder to trust your internal experiences because it affects awareness, memory, and continuity. You may not always have access to the same thoughts, feelings, or information…