Research has long shown that child abuse and neglect can and often do lead to a wide range of negative effects on a person’s life, including mental, physical, and behavioral problems. This kind of treatment during childhood causes stress that alters the way the child’s brain develops, affects gene expression, and changes the body’s stress response system. 

Kate Russell is the author of three memoirs about her life, describing her painful experiences in detail, from living with a schizoaffective sister to suffering addiction and subsequently recovering. Her most recent book, Ironing Out My Life: Child Abuse and How It Affected Everything Thereafter, is the third in the series and tells the story of her parents’ upbringing, then hers, and the impact their abusive behavior had on her life.

Kate is a strong, intelligent, highly resilient survivor, and it was my honor to speak with her for this episode. 

• Links related to this episode:
• Kate Russell’s website: https://www.katerussellauthor.com/ 
• Portrait of a Dysfunctional Family series: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DPY4BFCY
• Down the Rabbit Hole: A Memoir of Abuse, Addiction, and Recovery (first book): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08785R8S6
• Voicemails from My Sister: Stories of a Schizoaffective Sibling (second book): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B099Y8HF5Q
• Ironing Out My Life: Child Abuse and How It Affected Everything Thereafter (third book): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DPM92KW9 

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