​S. Jane Gari author of Losing the Dollhouse

My forthcoming Idiot’s Guide to the Healthy Gut Diet (due out in May 2016) inspired this week’s blog post. So many of us are recovering from trauma that affects our health. The truth is, there are ways we can reclaim our health and vitality. We just have to be willing to make some lifestyle changes. It’s no secret that emotional trauma and stress take a toll on your health. Whether you’ve endured abuse or had a horrific week at work, your body registers the blow. Your dige

When I started this blog, I wanted to start a conversation relevant to my memoir, but I was afraid I would exhaust the subject--or that the subject would exhaust me. The sad truth is the topic of sexual abuse, assault, harassment, and molestation cannot be exhausted. At least not in our current society. The news provides a constant stream of horror stories of high profile cases. Politicians, scout leaders, police officers, priests. Every group we're supposed to revere is

I love listening to NPR’s Here and Now to get the rundown on issues of the day, but I’ve never commented on their website after listening. Until last Thursday, January 14. I listened to their 10 minute segment entitled “Bill Clinton’s Past Infidelity and What It Means for Hillary’s Campaign”. I felt compelled to weigh in because the allegations against Bill Clinton hit a nerve with me. Bill Clinton’s bad behavior is about more than just “Past Infidelity”. This is about a

There’s a comedian named Margaret Cho. She’s hilarious. She’s also full of rage. Cho, like so many women, has been the victim of multiple sexual assaults. Some of the attacks on Cho happened in dark parking lots and at friends’ houses. But some happened in broad daylight with witnesses—no one questioned the man playfully lifting a girl in a swimming pool. What people didn’t see was how he strategically placed his fingers inside of her as he lifted her out of the water. What

Photo: Dad and me, April 1974 A girl’s father is the yardstick by which she’ll measure all the other men in her life. Without my father’s love and patience, I would never have made the more healthy decisions that led me to my husband, who is an amazing father to our daughter. I certainly kissed a lot of frogs first, but my father, supported by the instincts and advice of my stepmother, helped me weather that parade of frogs before I met the man who would measure up. My fath

“Anyone who has been the target of sexual or physical predation will know that, too often, the victim's voice is the first casualty of the abuser's relentless campaign of emotional manipulation, threats, and gas-lighting.” This was the review left by a generous Amazon customer named “Katrina” after she read my memoir about emotional and sexual abuse. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and her commentary is timely. If you haven’t had the chance yet, please check out the