This week on Trauma Candy Salad, the stories cut deep. Jumpy shares how her sister dismissed her pain after years of abuse, Gabe opens up about losing his best friend to the same partner who broke him down, and Jamberry reflects on a childhood scarred by betrayal and silence. Together, we unpack what it means to be hurt by the very people we thought would protect us—and how those wounds echo long after.

Candy in the bowl: Peach Rings, Sour Patch Kids, and Twix.

In this week’s Trauma Candy Salad, we’re joined by stories that travel across borders and back into childhood bedrooms. Omari shares the bittersweet push and pull of leaving Guinea for freedom in Europe, only to find himself battling loneliness, language barriers, and the ache of being “different.” Halo opens up about the lasting imprint of growing up in a chaotic home, where silence feels like danger instead of peace. And Maya brings us the heartbreak of building a life in the U.S. while separated from her son, working endless hours to give him the future she dreams of—even as she misses the moments that can’t be replaced.

These stories remind us how trauma follows us across oceans, generations, and even into the quietest moments of our lives. As always, if today’s episode stirred something in you, we’ve included resources in the show notes. And if you feel ready to share your own story, visit TraumaCandySalad.com—because no matter where you’re from or what you’ve been through, your story belongs here. 

NOTE: The TCS team is taking a small break for Labor Day next week and will be back the following Monday. We hope you enjoy your holiday and it gives our new listeners time to catch up on old episodes! 

In this week’s episode of Trauma Candy Salad, we sit down together again to share three powerful and very different stories of survival, abandonment, and the quiet hurts that stay with us.

• Runner Girl brought Tootsie Rolls and told us about the night she ran barefoot from her abuser, and how the bruises faded long before the fear.

• Juniper shared her story with Jolly Ranchers by her side, about facing terminal cancer alone after her husband walked out just seventeen days after her diagnosis.

• Sombr came with Blow Pops and opened up about a painfully humiliating moment at school when her period started unexpectedly, and how the laughter that followed still lingers in her mind.

Each story reminds us that trauma isn’t one-size-fits-all—whether it’s life-threatening, life-altering, or a moment you can’t shake, it matters.

If today’s episode brought something up for you, please take care of yourself and know you’re not alone.

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📌 Resources:

• Domestic Violence Support (U.S.): National Domestic Violence Hotline – Call 800-799-7233 or text “START” to 88788

• Sexual Assault Support (U.S.): RAINN – Call 800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit rainn.org

• Cancer Support: CancerCare offers free professional support – cancercare.org

• Mental Health Support: 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline – Dial 988 (U.S.) for free, 24/7 emotional support

• International List of Hotlines: findahelpline.com

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If you’ve got a story of your own—whether it’s big, small, or somewhere in between—we’d love to hear it. Share your story with us at TraumaCandySalad.com.

You can also connect with us on Instagram and TikTok @TraumaCandySaladPod for episode updates and community conversations.

And remember: whatever you’re carrying, there’s always room for a little sweetness. 🍬

With Kyle away on vacation, Sammi and Ashley welcome back our good friend Jess for a deeply personal and raw episode of Trauma Candy Salad. Today’s stories explore the tangled complexities of identity, survival, and friendship—told through the eyes of three storytellers who have lived them.

Grace shares her journey of growing up under the crushing weight of religious shame, learning to see love not as punishment but as grace.

Kacie reflects on twelve years in an emotionally neglectful marriage, and the moment she realized staying wasn’t the same thing as loving.

And Nurse D opens her heart about losing the rare kind of friendship she thought she’d always have—and the lingering fear of being “too much” for people.

These are stories of breaking free, finding truth, and learning to trust yourself again.

Trigger Warnings:

Religious trauma, internalized homophobia, emotional neglect, marital abandonment, grief, friendship loss, COVID-related stress, childhood instability, parental death, and themes of isolation.

Resources & Support:

• The Trevor Project – LGBTQ+ Support

• RAINN – Sexual Assault Support

• National Domestic Violence Hotline | Call/Text 988 in the U.S.

• NAMI – Mental Health Resources

If any of today’s topics resonate with you, please take care of yourself first. You are not alone, and help is out there.

Share Your Story:

Your voice matters. If you’d like to share your own experience, visit TraumaCandySalad.com/submit-a-story to submit anonymously or by name. We also hang out on Instagram and TikTok at @TraumaCandySaladPod—come connect with us.

🖤 This week on Trauma Candy Salad, we’re joined by a new guest host, Ivy, while Kyle is off on vacation. Sammi, Ashley, and Ivy bring three deeply personal stories to the table—each one a window into survival, resilience, and the quiet work of rebuilding after trauma.

In today’s episode, you’ll hear:

• A woman’s harrowing first date that ended in an assault—but also introduced her to the man who would later teach her what safe love feels like.

• A young Latina woman’s experience with racism, xenophobia, and the weight of being made to prove her right to exist in the only country she’s ever called home.

• A man still grappling with the death of his little sister, years after her passing, and how grief carved silence into every corner of his life.

These stories are raw, tender, and powerful—reminders that healing doesn’t happen all at once, and sometimes, the most radical thing we can do is keep showing up.

🧁 This week’s candy bowl includes Snickers, Blow Pops, and Reese’s.

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⚠️ Trigger Warnings

This episode contains discussions of:

• Sexual assault and date rape

• Racism and xenophobia

• Childhood cancer and sibling loss

• PTSD, anxiety, and grief

• Family trauma and emotional neglect

Please listen with care. If any of these topics are sensitive or activating for you, consider skipping sections or returning when you feel safe and grounded.

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🧰 Resources for Listeners

If you or someone you love is struggling, here are some resources that may help:

Sexual Assault Support

• RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network): 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) | www.rainn.org

• National Sexual Violence Resource Center: www.nsvrc.org

Mental Health & Grief

• NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness): 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) | www.nami.org

• The Dougy Center (Grief support for children, teens & families): www.dougy.org

• Therapy Matcher (via Open Path Collective): www.openpathcollective.org

Racism & Immigration Support

• RAICES (Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services): www.raicestexas.org

• United We Dream: www.unitedwedream.org

In this episode, the siblings of Trauma Candy Salad are back together to share three harrowing listener stories that explore what happens when the people meant to protect us become the ones who hurt us most.

From childhood abuse and fear-driven obedience, to the loss of a mother struggling with addiction, to the pain of forced separation and emotional abandonment during a teen pregnancy, each story reveals the long shadows that maternal trauma and generational cycles can cast.

These are stories of silence, survival, and, ultimately, strength.

🍬 Today’s Candy Bowl Includes:

• Butterfingers (Baby Giraffe)

• Nerds (Dani)

• Peach Rings (Serena)

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🚨 Trigger Warnings:

This episode contains descriptions of child abuse, domestic violence, emotional neglect, teen pregnancy, drug addiction, death of a parent, coercive adoption, suicidal ideation, and parental abandonment.

Please take care while listening and skip any sections that may be too difficult for you right now.

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💛 You are not alone.

If today’s stories stirred something in you, please give yourself compassion and care. Resources and support links are available on www.traumacandysalad.com.

If you have a story you want to share, visit our website to submit anonymously. And don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and TikTok at @TraumaCandySaladPod for updates, support, and a sprinkle of laughter between the heaviness.

While Ashley is out sick, Sammi’s best friend Jessica—who also happens to be Phil’s sister-in-law—steps in for a deeply meaningful episode. (Fun fact: without Jessica, there’d be no Trauma Candy Salad at all.)

This week, we read three submissions that explore the quieter sides of trauma: emotional neglect in a marriage, caregiver guilt and exhaustion, and the lifelong ripple effects of childhood abuse. These stories are raw, brave, and heartbreakingly honest—and they remind us that even when we think we’re alone in our pain, someone else might be sitting with the same ache.

TW: Emotional neglect, child loss, suicide ideation, postpartum depression, disability caregiver fatigue, sexual assault, CPTSD.

Want to submit your story? Visit TraumaCandySalad.com or click the link in our bio.                                                               💛 Mental Health & Crisis Resources:

• Crisis Text Line – Text HOME to 741741 (24/7, free, confidential)

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline – Call or text 988 (U.S. only)

• National Domestic Violence Hotline – 800-799-SAFE (7233) or thehotline.org

• RAINN (Sexual Assault Support) – 800-656-HOPE (4673) or rainn.org

• Postpartum Support International – 1-800-944-4773 or postpartum.net

• Find a Therapist – psychologytoday.com or therapyden.com

Ashley’s out sick this week, so our producer Phil steps in to help share three stories about complicated love, quiet resilience, and the way our past can shape us. This one’s tender, a little heavy, and full of heart.

🍬 Follow us @TraumaCandySaladPod

🖤 Submit your story at TraumaCandySalad.comNeed support?

You’re not alone. Here are some trusted mental health resources:

• 988 Lifeline – Call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org for 24/7 crisis support

• Crisis Text Line – Text HELLO to 741741 for free, confidential help anytime

• NAMI – nami.org: mental health education, support groups, and tools

• Therapy for Black Girls – therapyforblackgirls.com

• Open Path Collective – openpathcollective.org: affordable therapy options

🖤 Take care of you. You deserve it.

This one’s for the originals. 💌 Today we’re sharing stories from two of the first people who ever trusted us with their trauma—before Trauma Candy Salad was even a podcast.

There’s childhood betrayal, broken bones, grief, and one very questionable car ride. But more than that, there’s survival—and the full-circle reminder that being believed can change everything.

⚠️ TW: Sexual abuse, neglect, suicide, substance use, kidnapping

📩 Share your story

In this episode of Trauma Candy Salad, we’re diving into three unforgettable stories that remind us healing is rarely linear and sometimes it starts with a missed period, a fatal accident, or being forced to grow up too fast. From discovering you’re not the only one he’s raw-dogging (spoiler: he’s gross), to navigating grief, guilt, and complicated friendships, to a lifetime of generational trauma and finding sobriety after almost losing it all, we’re talking about the kind of pain that shapes you, but doesn’t define you.

🍬 Candy in the Bowl Today: Gummy Worms, Cadbury Caramels, and Sour Patch Kids Watermelon.

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⚠️ Trigger Warnings:

This episode contains discussions of unplanned pregnancy, abortion, infidelity, death of a friend, emotional abuse, parental substance abuse, childhood trauma, mental health struggles, suicidal ideation, and substance use. Please take care while listening.

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💌 Got a story of your own?

We’re always listening. Submit your trauma at https://www.traumacandysalad.com/submit-a-story  You never know who needs to hear what you’ve survived.