FSA Recovery

The Fantasy “Repair” Experience of the FSA Adult Survivor

by Rebecca C Mandeville LMFT CCTP
September 10, 2022August 21, 2024
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One of the things that keeps survivors of family scapegoating abuse (FSA) stuck and unable to progress in their recovery is the fantasy that if they can say the ‘right’ thing to the ‘right’ person within (or connected to) their family-of-origin, the fact of their abuse will be acknowledged and validated. Tragically, this is unlikely to happen. But this does not change the truth of what happened to you, and your truth deserves to be both told and then heard and validated by people who have the capacity to care.

The Relationship Between Family Scapegoating Abuse (FSA) and Traumatic Shame

by Rebecca C Mandeville LMFT CCTP
June 18, 2022May 24, 2024
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There are very few clients who enter my FSA Recovery Coaching practice who are not suffering from traumatic shame (also known as ‘toxic shame’), as well as a variety of complex trauma (C-PTSD) symptoms – something I discuss at length in my book, Rejected, Shamed, and Blamed. While traumatic shame creates a sense of social isolation, complex trauma itself fragments us and leads to self-alienation, leaving the adult survivor of family scapegoating abuse (FSA) feeling intensely alone and unsupported.

Family Scapegoating Abuse and Healing the Mother Wound

by Rebecca C Mandeville LMFT CCTP
May 6, 2022May 24, 2024
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Mother’s Day can be a particularly painful holiday for adult survivors of family scapegoating abuse (FSA), especially for those that are estranged from their nuclear family. Today’s article therefore focuses on mother wounding and transforming the ‘negative mother’ archetype.