Terry Real

That's spontaneity, and that's unhampered, unwounded.

That's a beautiful part of us.

That's fine.

Leave it alone.

Celebrate it.

What you call the unhealthy child, here's my model.

And interestingly, this jives with Dan Siegel, a neuroscientist.

So I talk about the wise adult part of us, prefrontal cortex, that can stop and think and reason and choose.

That's the part I'm trying to grow and cultivate and give skills to.

The issue is when the heat comes on, and it really has to do with trauma,

When something happens in the present that is similar to what was dangerous or injured us in the past, could be a violation, could be abandonment, it could be either an active mistreatment or neglect either.

When something in the present, you know this of course, we don't remember trauma, we relive it.

So the combat bit, here's a car backfire and turns around like she's got a gun in her hand.

She's not thinking, I'm walking down Main Street remembering combat.

She's in combat.

The present goes away.

And it's subcortical, limbic system amygdala.

And you get flooded.

That's what we call the wounded child.

Very young.