Speaking Out Loud

The Secret to Happiness

The Secret to Happiness

The secret to happiness The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. Mahatma Gandhi  Aren’t we all just trying to find ourselves? We throw our entire being into the system laid out in front of us. Nursery, middle school, high school,...

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Life Will Break You

Life Will Break You

“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and being alone won't either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You have to risk your heart. You are here to be...

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Languishing

Languishing

Simply expressing ourselves is a gift we chose to give the world and to others. When we express ourselves, we pave way for others to do the same or just allow them to feel they are not alone. Whatever it is we may feel, there is a name for it and if there isn’t then no one has to ‘name’ it because it’s unique to us and our journey and there is no shame in that.

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I Wish You Bad Luck

I Wish You Bad Luck

I wish you bad luck Luck and misfortune are closely intertwined. – Thomas Muller Bad things will happen and many of us may call it ‘bad luck, fate or destiny. Whatever it is I hope you find the courage to make the most of your bad luck, to turn your pain and…

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What is bodily autonomy?

What is bodily autonomy?

What is bodily autonomy? #Mybodyismyown Have you heard of the term ‘bodily autonomy’ before? Let us look at it from this perspective ‘autonomy’ means many different things one of which is the right of a country or organization to be independent and govern…

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A Little Bukowski

A Little Bukowski

A Little Bukowski for Spring “You begin saving the world by saving one person at a time; all else is grandiose romanticism or politics.”― Charles Bukowski Charles Bukowski is one of my favorite writers. There is something so raw, honest, and profound in the

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Compassion Fatigue

Compassion Fatigue

  Compassion fatigue      “You once told me you wanted to find yourself in the world, and I told you to first apply within, to discover the world within you. You once told me you wanted to save the world from all its wars, and I told you to first save...

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A Message from Chaplin

A Message from Chaplin

a message from chaplin   “We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other's happiness, not by each other's misery." ― Charlie Chaplin   In 1940 the American political satire comedy-drama film ' The Great Dictator' was...

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If You See the Wound

If You See the Wound

  If you see the wound  “Stop treating your pain like it’s something you imagined. If you see the wound is real, then you can heal it.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom    The Speak Trauma team took part in the ' Fierce Awakened Woman Global Online...

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For Those

For Those

  Compassion fatigue      “You once told me you wanted to find yourself in the world, and I told you to first apply within, to discover the world within you. You once told me you wanted to save the world from all its wars, and I told you to first save...

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The Fierce Awakened Woman

The Fierce Awakened Woman

Fierce & Awakened    People now murmur that I am your enemy For they claim that in verses I reveal your essence to the world. They lie, Julia de Burgos. They lie, Julia de Burgos. The voice uplifted in my verses is not your own: it is mine, For you are...

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Disobedient Girl

Disobedient Girl

For as long as the world can remember, women all over have experienced abuse in one way or the other. Even though we do not live in the time of burning women alive at the stake, we still live in a time where women constantly have to fear for their safety, sanity, and wellbeing. We still live in a time where some women have to fight for their basic human rights, where some even fight just to be heard and understood. In many instances, women and young girls face constant abuse some even die, and it goes unheard of because it was never reported or documented.

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Be a Storyteller

Be a Storyteller

Like Wanniarachchi says in her quote, stand up, speak up, roar. Let us not be silent till we are all equal. There is no age limit to when we can start making a difference, even if just small baby steps because to some disadvantaged people. These baby steps are large strides in the right direction.

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Break The Cycle

Break The Cycle

It takes a lot of courage to admit defeat. A lot of courage to say, “I have been hurt”, “I am traumatized”, “I was abused”, “my life is a mess right now”. It is an on-going cycle and the scars and burden we carry hang on to our feet like a corpse being dragged everywhere we go.  It is the words we do not say that will haunt us physically, emotionally and mentally.

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This Is What You Shall Do

This Is What You Shall Do

This is what you shall do “This is what you shall do; Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God,…

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Reminder: Lebanon

Reminder: Lebanon

Lebanon is still healing from the trauma it had to endure for years and years. It is something we easily forget given the last year we had to face with uncertainty due to the 2020 COVID global pandemic that put the entire world in lockdowns. We feared for our future while the people of Lebanon had to constantly fear for their life, we worried about our travel plans while the people of Lebanon worried about their next meal

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We Care About You Lebanon

We Care About You Lebanon

If you thought you had a bad year, Lebanon had quite the 2020. Political discomfort, an economy barely hanging they also had to face the COVID pandemic with little resources. But what happened on August 2020 shook the whole world. The port blast was a tragedy the country had to face on top of its other problems, people were running out of hospitals, some women were even giving birth during that time. 

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Documenting for Change

Documenting for Change

Unconsciously we document everything, if not on paper, film or photo then in our minds, our bodies even muscle tissue and fascia. Today more than ever we have access to technologies that allow us to document the smallest of things especially on our social media channels

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! كفى. ENOUGH. BASTA!

! كفى. ENOUGH. BASTA!

According to the United Nations, Women official website; 35 % of women worldwide have experienced either physical or sexual violence or harassment in their life, either from their partner or a stranger. That is 1 in 3 women worldwide and that is not all; in 2017 87,000 women were killed

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I’m Not Ok

I’m Not Ok

In many societies, there is a stigma surrounding not feeling ok as if it is taboo to be real.  Many of us were raised to believe that it was wrong to speak about your misfortune and ill feelings, and while I understand the intention, I do not understand why we must lie about our true feelings.

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5 Quotes to Get you Through

5 Quotes to Get you Through

In life we will all face challenges, some more traumatic than others. I truly believe that each event or incident whether good or bad plays a role in shaping us to become the best version of ourselves. Most importantly, whenever we go through something, big or small we must speak about it, giving others the courage to do the same and reminding them that they are never alone so we can heal as a collective and as cliché as it sounds, make the world a better place.

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Healing Trauma

Healing Trauma

We continue our series with clinical psychologist Dr. Ottilia Brown from Lighthouse Arabia on how to heal trauma. Dr Brown explains that that untreated trauma can lead to psychiatric conditions like posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety disorder, substance use disorders, dissociative disorders and adjustment disorders which significantly affect functioning and quality of life.

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