A deep reflective piece on walking alone, self-healing, creativity, and reclaiming inner resilience after trauma.

Author Nicole (Nikki) Currivan recounts her difficult path to overcoming a substance use disorder, ultimately achieving lasting remission. Nikki encountered many challenges with substance abuse as her Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) repeatedly moved her from one treatment center to another.

Trauma is not merely an event that fades with time; it etches itself into the very fabric of our being, demanding acknowledgment and resolution. Though my experience happened in 2017, it took me four years to give the pain the acceptance and acknowledgment it needed. I got a text from someone wishing me "Happy Mother's Day," and it broke me four years later. It was at that point that I realized that our body keeps the score of every experience we go through.