Have you rejected God? Do you really struggle in your relationship with him? If you’re from a broken family and that’s true, you’re not strange. In fact, it’s really common.

Why? From a young age, our parents represent God to us. If their example wasn’t good, it leaves us with a distorted image of God. As a result, we reject him or struggle extra in our relationship with him. We discuss that and more:

• How Sr. Miriam began drinking at age 12 and became an alcoholic as a D1 athlete
• 3 common barriers that prevent you from healing
• Tough questions like, “Why would God allow our families to fall apart?” and “Why doesn’t God make his love more obvious?”

Buy Sr. Miriam’s Book: Behold: A Guided Advent Journal for Prayer and Meditation

Buy Joey’s Book: It’s Not Your Fault: A Practical Guide to Navigating the Pain and Problems from Your Parents’ Divorce

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

If you’re from a broken family, you don’t need anyone to tell you how stressful, depressing, or just plain difficult the holidays can be. If you can relate, this episode is for you.

In it, we offer:

• 3 steps to plan the holidays, so you can reduce the drama and actually enjoy them
• Advice from a former trauma therapist on how to deal with your difficult emotions this time of the year, so they don’t control you and you don’t act out in unhealthy ways
• Resources to help you cope, heal, and grow from the trauma of your broken family

Apply for coaching with Margaret 

Join Restored’s community

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10 Questions

1. When will you spend time with each parent, if possible?
2. Who can you ask to be your swim buddy?
3. What three things should you do to take care of yourself?
4. What healthy distractions can you use in intense situations?
5. What predictable circumstances will come up and what can you say or do in them?
6. What expectations and boundaries need to be set?
7. If you can’t be with your family, what can you do to experience some sort of community instead of your family? 
8. When and how will you communicate the plan?
9. What can you say to lead with your intention?
10. What’s your plan to respond if mom or dad gets upset?

Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

Imagine you have all the success, pleasure, money, and excitement you could want. But instead of being happy, you feel unhappy and empty. What would you do?

That was the story of our guest today. The wounds from his broken family were at the core of his need to live a life of extreme pleasure, excitement, and ultimately, unhappiness. But that all began to change when the 2016 US presidential election caused him to question everything. In time, he went from partying with billionaire Silicon Valley entrepreneurs to living a very different life.

In this episode, you’ll hear his story and also:

• How he didn’t even recognize that he was trying to fill an endless hole
• How the lack of an example in how to form healthy relationships inhibited is ability to do so and caused a lot of turmoil in his relationships
• How transforming himself led him to his beautiful soon-to-be bride and authentic happiness

Get the free chapters or buy the book: It’s Not Your Fault: A Practical Guide to Navigating the Pain and Problems from Your Parents’ Divorce

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

If you’re from a broken family, you’ve likely dealt with a lot of fear. For so many of us, that holds us back in life and relationships. At the core of that fear is usually the fact that we don’t feel safe. 

In this episode, a psychologist joins us to discuss why so many people struggle to feel safe and how that affects their life and relationships. We also touch on:

• What exactly is healing? Dr. Showalter explains 3 aspects of healing.
• Is healing actually possible, or are we doomed to merely manage symptoms? 
• What to do if you feel afraid or embarrassed about seeing a therapist
• A healing tool called the Safe and Sound Protocol

Sign up for Therapy or the Safe and Sound Protocol with Dr. Showalter

Share How Restored Has Helped You

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

For so many of us, our parents’ divorce causes us to question everything — especially if it came out of the blue. We ask ourselves: What won’t fall apart? We may even go through life feeling like there’s a disaster around every corner and as a result, so often we play it safe in life. 

We discuss that and more in this episode as my guest shares:

• How she blamed herself for the breakdown of her parents’ marriage
• How nobody was there for her
• How she struggled with low self-esteem, self-harm, and acting out sexually
• How she never had children because she feared she couldn’t be a good mom

Share your story

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

Art is healing. If you’re not an artistic person, that might seem odd. But it’s true. In this episode, we discuss why and how art can be healing and more:

• What type of art has been healing for our guests
• How art can help people from broken families
• A piece of religious art specifically for Catholic/Christian adult children of divorce

Dr. Daniel: Buy the artwork or sign up for the retreat

Mike: View his artwork

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

If you’re ashamed of your past because of mistakes or abuse, it’s natural to feel stuck. But you don’t have to stay stuck. Healing and freedom are possible for you.

Author and speaker Crystalina Evert vulnerably shares how her broken family and sexual abuse caused her to cope with drugs, drinking, and sleeping around. We also discuss:

• Tactics that have helped her heal
• A new book to help any woman, especially women who have suffered abuse
• Advice and encouragement to women who’ve suffered abus e or feel broken

Buy Crystalina’s Book or Get First Chapter Free

Get a Coach

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

A myth about children of divorce is that the impact of our parents’ divorce is temporary. That’s simply not true, which research proves. Sadly, the effects last long after the divorce itself. 

Our guest today shares how his parents divorce has impacted him, even 20 years later in his own marriage. We discuss:

• How he felt lost when it came to dating and relationships, how breakups felt like a repeat of his parents’ divorce, and how he irrationally fears that his spouse is going to leave one day
• What it’s like to go through a divorce in a Mexican family
• What to do when you’re unsure how to articulate a feeling or experience you’ve endured, especially related to your broken family
• A story on having a difficult conversation with his mom, which offers good lessons for having a difficult conversation with your parents

Get the Book or Free Chapters: It’s Not Your Fault

Meet with Joey for the Investor’s Pitch

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

Marriage isn’t easy. There are good times and challenging times. According to research, people like us from broken families typically struggle more in relationships and marriage. As a result, we’re more likely to need help.

In this episode, a couple that offers marriage coaching offers advice and shares the one thing missing most in marriages today. We also discuss:

• The most common struggles faced by the couples they coach
• Communication tips to help your relationship survive and thrive
• Tactics for handling conflict well 
• Advice to couples in crisis, even on the brink of divorce
• A resource to help your marriage or another marriage that’s struggling

Get the Free Guide: 7 Tips to Build a Thriving and Divorce-Proof Marriage

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!

In this episode, we answer questions from listeners like you. Each question reveals a real life challenge faced by someone from a broken family. We offer answers and practical guidance.

The questions include:

• How do you deal with your parents divorce when it isn’t a clearly justifiable split?
• As divorced parents, how do we make up for all the mistakes we’ve made and help our kids heal?
• How do I openly talk about my parents divorce without hurting them in the way I view it?
• How do I build a better relationship with my dad when he isn’t emotionally there and has never talked to me about my parents separating/divorcing?
• How do I deal with my anger toward my parents?

Get your question answered on the podcast

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Question for Joey or our guests? Text us. We'll answer on the show as soon as we're able. You can be anonymous if you'd like!