• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Mike Skinner Music

Mike Skinner Music

  • Home
  • Contact
  • About
    • What I Do As A Musician
    • What I Do As An Advocate
    • Testimonials
    • Biography
    • Awards
    • Accomplishments
  • News
    • Articles
    • Video
    • Interviews & Performances
  • Music
    • Album: Waitin’ For A Train
    • Album: Train of Tears
      • Thank You
    • Album: Pirates
  • Presentations
    • Presentations, Workshops and Writing
    • Let Michael Talk At Your Next Meeting
  • Advocacy
    • Why Advocacy?
    • Creativity, Mental Health and Advocacy Resources
    • Hope, Healing & Help for Trauma and Abuse
    • Peer Support and Help
    • Famous People With A Mental Health Concern / Illness
  • My account

Trauma Memories – Good & Bad & The Surviving Spirit Newsletter

March 8, 2015 by Michael Skinner

 

“Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls: the most massive characters are seared with scars.” Kahlil Gibran

“My sun sets to rise again.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Hello Folks,

They say Spring is around the corner, but looking out my office window, I’m not so sure. I see a snowbank that is five feet high and at least fifteen feet wide. This is the accumulation of snow from the past several weeks that had to be shoveled off of the driveway. This snow bank reminds me of a castle wall, and I think back to my time touring Great Britain with the hard rock band, TRAIN. We performed many times in the city of Chester, England. Playing music was fun, but so was the time I had in exploring this city. The original Roman fortifications still encircled Chester and what was amazing to me, was the width of the parapets – they were built to allow their chariots to rush to the defense of breaches upon the fortification. So now, I look out my half covered windows and think back to a time of peace and serenity for me, creating music and starting a family. Two incredible years spent in Great Britain, that allowed me some time away from my family of origin, giving me time to reflect upon my life and how hurtful my childhood was…it’s funny how we can have memories of nice times and yet they can also be tied in to the dark times of our lives.

And that can be a conundrum for so many of us dealing with trauma and abuse concerns from the past. I know for myself, seeing young children smiling and happy at play, with or without their parents, brings a warm glow to my soul, and yet, there is also a cold chill that creeps in when I think of myself as a child and not having that playfulness…or, I can be reminded of my own children when they were young and how they brought such joy into my life…and yet, later on when struggling with depression and post traumatic stress, they were taken out of my life due a horrible divorce where all that had to be said was that I was “mentally ill” a few times, and well, that wrecked everything…even with no history of violence or abuse at either my ex-wife or my children.

Trauma is a strange creature to me, I’ve learned about it, I advocate to help raise awareness on its impact upon all of us, and yet for all I learn and continue to learn, it still can be such a darn mystery to me. I’m flooded with good memories and thoughts and then somehow, it allows the other not-so-nice feelings and hurts to come into view. Strange indeed to me…and that is part of the reason why I find great comfort in what is shared in this newsletter and from other resources – there is Hope, there is Healing and there is Help…and it helps to remind me, that I’m not alone in my struggles. We are a community of healing…and that gives me joy.

Someday I hope to be able to walk upon those castle walls again…

Take care, Michael Skinner

“If we fail to look after others when they need help, who will look after us?” Unknown

2015-03-The_Surviving_Spirit_Newsletter_March_2015

PS How about yourself, do you deal with trauma memories that bring up the pleasant and the not-so-pleasant memories and feelings of the past? What are your coping skills when this happens?….  Please write, I would like to know…and please let me know of any helpful resources that can be shared in future Surviving Spirit Newsletters, Thanks!!!

Also, if you would like to be on the monthly mailing list for the newsletter, please send me your e-mail address – they can also be viewed at the Surviving Spirit website

Filed Under: News

Primary Sidebar

Recent News

  • Surviving Spirit Newsletter May 2025
  • I Hear You Calling(c) By Michelle Skinner and Michael Skinner – Live Performance
  • Monday Music sharing – Peace Of Mind
  • Surviving Spirit Newsletter April 2025
  • April is Child Abuse Awareness Month; thoughts, statistics and a song to share

RSS Trauma & Abuse News

  • We CAN do something!
  • Artificial Intelligence is coming for us all
  • ACEsTooHigh on hiatus
  • This isn’t your usual article about how bad domestic violence is; it’s about a solution
  • To end domestic violence, heal the abusers…say those who do
  • 2 Worth checking out: Neighborhood uses ACEs to prevent opioid deaths; burgeoning research about PACEs science
  • 2 Worth checking out: innerBoy app a promising solution for family violence. Could Ozempic curb cravings for alcohol, shopping & gambling?
  • 2 Worth checking out: Childhood adversity linked to health, financial problems in older adults; bill introduced to untangle poverty from child neglect
  • ACEsTooHigh spins off from PACEs Connection
  • Mayday at the Bottom of the World

Archives

  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • October 2023
  • July 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • November 2019
  • May 2019
  • March 2019
  • July 2018
  • December 2017
  • June 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • September 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013

Categories

  • Articles
  • Interviews and Performances – Audio Files
  • Mental Health Advocacy
  • Music
  • News
  • Sexual Abuse Advocacy
  • Uncategorized
  • Video

Footer

Address

38 River Ledge Drive
Goffstown, NH 03045
Google Map/Directions, Contact Form

Site Links

Biography
Testimonials
Resume
Awards
Events
Contact

Advocacy

Why Advocacy
Trauma / Sexual Abuse / Incest
Peer Support And Help
Mental Health Info & Resources
The Famous List

Connect With Mike

Visit Mike On Facebook Visit Mike On Twitter
Visit Mike On YouTube Visit Mike On MySpace
Get The RSS Feed