protected sibling Archives - Page 3 of 6

Read more about the article When Nothing Happens but Everything Hurts: Living With a Nervous System on High Alert

In some families, preserving the system can mean discrediting the person who points out harm. The scapegoat’s experience is often dismissed to maintain control and avoid accountability.

When Nothing Happens but Everything Hurts: Living With a Nervous System on High Alert

An Ordinary Moment, a Trauma Response My lived experience offered no assurance that I—or anything—would be okay. At a subconscious level, I suspected I might have less trouble if I…

Comments Off

December 21, 2025

Family Scapegoating & Golden Child Dynamics / Highly Sensing Person

“But What Did She Do?”

Friend: So you’re not in contact with your daughter anymore? Family Member: No, she’s just too much. Always some issue with her. Always making everything harder than it has to…

Comments Off

April 24, 2025

Family Scapegoating & Golden Child Dynamics / Surviving Narcissistic Abuse

Scapegoating- How it begins

"Any time a small child gets labeled and referred to by a parent as too much or bad, that child/baby is actually being handed the job of covering for a…

Comments Off

December 24, 2022

Family Scapegoating & Golden Child Dynamics / Trauma

Me Too: Finding Connection Through Shared Pain

Me too. Not necessarily hashtag‑MeToo, but “me also”—and sometimes, yes, #metoo. Since I no longer attend live, face‑to‑face 12‑step meetings, this is my meeting. What I always got from in‑person…

Comments Off

May 29, 2021