The Power Of Sharing Your Story

In this episode, Nikki Bush speaks to Madeleine Black, an author, speaker, sexual violence activist, former psychotherapist and host of the acclaimed international podcast called Unbroken: healing through storytelling. 

After decades of silence, Madeleine decided to publicly share her own story in September 2014. And she completely underestimated what the response would be. She published her book Unbroken in 2017 – a must-read.

Madeleine is passionate about speaking out to end the shame, stigma and silence surrounding sexual violence and to help others find their courage and voice too.

This conversation covers:

  • The cost of staying silent
  • Shaming shame
  • Many paths to unlocking trauma
  • How to start unravelling and de-layering your own story
  • How to shift your mindset to tap into your own resilience
  • The power of story sharing
  • Are you ever truly broken?
  • Madeleine’s Podcast: Unbroken: Healing Through Storytelling
  • Her Book:  Unbroken: One Woman’s Journey to Rebuild a Life Shattered by Violence. A True Story of Survival and Hope
  • Her Website: Madeleine Black, the courage cultivator

“We all hold secrets. And shame for lots of different reasons. And we all have a fear of being found out.”

Madeleine Black, Author, Speaker, Sexual Violence Activist.

“I believe that none of us is broken beyond repair.”

Madeleine Black, Author, Speaker, Sexual Violence Activist.

“For a long time, I just went to talking therapies and that seemed to help a lot. I became a mother, which is something I thought I would never do. I told my husband I was too scared to give birth because I thought it would be like being raped again. But, I decided that if I didn’t do it, then they’ve won; they’ve taken all my power away and they don’t even know that they’re doing that! So I’ve had three gorgeous girls. That was a huge healing corner.”

Madeleine Black, Author, Speaker, Sexual Violence Activist.

“It’s always been about getting back into my body, you know because on that night when I was gang-raped at the age of 13, I really left my body. So most of the healing and therapy I did was to land me back in my body again.”

Madeleine Black, Author, Speaker, Sexual Violence Activist.

“Pushing my trauma down didn’t help because it came out in other ways. So, ultimately, the way in is always going to be the way out.”

Madeleine Black, Author, Speaker, Sexual Violence Activist.

“Every emotional trigger back to your trauma is an opportunity for you to just watch the show, to stay as steady as you possibly can, to ground yourself and breathe through it. And just to let yourself know, this isn’t real. This is just residue from the trauma This isn’t happening again. This is just the pictures. It’s just like watching a movie. I’ve got so good at watching the movie that I can just watch it, and it doesn’t really affect me anymore. So it’s an opportunity, even though it’s a very tough thing to go through.”

Madeleine Black, Author, Speaker, Sexual Violence Activist.

Please listen to another episode in my Podcast series, Lie, Hide, Repress, Deny. This podcast also deals with the subject of gender-based violence