Conversations With Cinthia

Following last week’s show about shame, Cinthia talked today about a life circumstance that can cause a significant amount of shame: being or having been in a toxic relationship.  People are imperfect, so our relationships are bound to be the same.  Some relationships, however, are more than imperfect – they are dangerous to your physical and/or emotional health.  Toxic relationships are often difficult to recognize at first, but, like other kinds of toxicity, they can wear away at us, making us progressively more stressed, isolated, confused, afraid, and angry.  Toxic relationships tear constantly at self-esteem and can involve abuse, gaslighting/narcissism, and exhaustion from constantly trying to avoid another person’s negative reactions.  Toxic relationships can actually harm your physical health because they cause chronic stress, which can cause long-term activation of the brain’s CTRA, contributing to chronic inflammation and potentially leading to health problems like adrenal fatigue.  Toxic relationsh