Adult Child

The Truth About Codependency: Why It’s Not Empathy, It’s Survival w/ Dr. Sarah Michaud


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You think you’re being helpful. Supportive. Loyal. But what if you’re actually just terrified of being abandoned? Codependency isn’t about caring too much — it’s about losing yourself to survive.

Dr. Sarah Michaud is a psychologist and author of Co-Crazy. Despite years of sobriety and a successful therapy practice, Sarah found herself trapped in a toxic relationship in recovery — a painful experience that finally forced her to confront the deep, unhealed trauma she didn’t even realize was still running the show.

🔑 Key Takeaways:

  • Codependency isn’t selflessness — it’s a survival response wired by emotional neglect, fear, and unresolved trauma
  • The myth of being “fine”: how high-functioning codependents stay sober, help others, and still avoid their deepest pain
  • Why we mistake fear-based caretaking for empathy — and how to finally tell the difference
  • The grief of healing: letting go of relationships that only worked when we didn’t express needs or take up space
  • What real recovery from codependency looks like — beyond insight, beyond sobriety, and deep into the body


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Adult ChildBy Andrea Ashley

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