Smoky Mountain Sorcery

Tag: Mental health

  • No, Love Doesn’t Win

    It’s been a rough few days. A good friend of mine, venting rage and frustration about the general loss of bodily autonomy and civil rights we’re witnessing said something along the lines of, “I know love wins and all that, but right now I’m angry.” They were posting on social media to an audience that…

  • Spring in Appalachia: Starting a Farm With Trauma

    It’s an absolutely beautiful day here in western North Carolina. We’re having a run of unseasonably warm weather which has me itching to get the garden going. I have dreams. Big dreams. Lush flowerbeds, a full-on witch’s garden with all my favorite poison plants, and of course enough veggies to feed a small army (or…

  • Britney Spears: Trauma Is Messy Cut Her Some Slack

    For 13 years, Britney Spears wasn’t allowed to stand up for herself. She was not allowed to speak publicly without a filter. Her every move was controlled, to the point of being forced to take medication and even have an IUD implanted against her will. The fact that it was her own family who put…

  • Mourning Dexter

    I am not ok today, and the reasons why are really throwing me for a loop. It just doesn’t make sense except as a trauma response. Apologies if this article is messy and disjointed, but I’m trying to sort this out. I’m grieving y’all. Spoiler alert: I’m going to discuss the end of Dexter: New…

  • Sorry, Amy Coney Barrett: Adoption is NOT The Answer To Abortion

    As an adoptee, I’ve known from a young age that I could have been aborted. When I was gestating in 1970, North Carolina was one of the few states that already allowed abortion in limited circumstances (danger to mother’s health, rape, incest or likely damaged fetus.) As my birth sister explained it, my mother was…

  • Dexter Tackles Adoption Trauma

    Last night’s episode of Dexter: New Blood was super emotional for me. Without giving too much away, my favorite serial killer’s son has tracked him down in his new life in upstate New York. Since Dex faked his death when Harrison was 5, their reunion has been a bit bumpy. Last night, they went to…

  • Can People With Family Trauma Do Ancestor Work?

    So apparently there are some occult-types who think Ancestor veneration is required for all of us. But for those of us with trauma, family is often a tricky subject. If you don’t know what it’s like to be disowned or rejected by family, you really don’t have a clue how painful the idea of setting…

  • The Mòrrìgan and Mental Health

    I was in a very deep pit. Surrounded by fog and darkness, weighed down by heavy stones. Chunks of time were missing from my memory. For days on end I slept nearly round the clock, waking up in the evenings long enough to get drunk and send my husband (who works overseas) long, desperate texts…

  • Meghan, Harry & Oprah: Trauma Doesn’t Care About Privilege

    CW: suicidal ideation. It’s 5am here in North Carolina, and I just finished streaming Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Prince Harry and Dutchess Meghan. They royal family can suck it, I’m honoring their titles and you can’t stop me. So I guess you can tell already where I land on the Harry vs. The Firm question.…

  • Self Care Magic: Creeks & Streams

    A few minutes beside a stream can calm the most persistent anxiety, at least for a while. There is some scientific backing for this. According to the book Blue Mind: The Surprising Science That Shows How Being Near, In, On, or Under Water Can Make You Happier, Healthier, More Connected, and Better at What You Do, being…