Oh, I wish the empathy thing was a given, but based on the amount of victim-blaming I see in the media, I don’t think it is.

I suppose the difference in response just comes down to individual differences. We all deal with our crap in different ways! :) I definitely didn’t have any kind of supportive family or environment, if that’s what you’re thinking. I wasn’t even able to get appropriate mental-health care for my C-PTSD until well into my 30s.

But, I’ve always had the motto of facing the thing I fear the most, of not letting anything scare me so much it limits me. Case in point: when I was little, the thing that scared me most of all was skeletons. Terrified me, gave me nightmares. So I went to the library and read anatomy books. I’d seek out displays of skeletons in science classrooms and museums. Eventually, I started down the career path of being a forensic anthropologist (though it didn’t work out for other reasons). I’m still fascinated by skeletons and anything death related. I took the thing I feared, and made it mine.

I’m not saying “you should do this!” because it’s not my place to tell you what you “should” do — I respect that you know what’s best for you. I just shared that to illustrate where I’m coming from, why I am attracted to true crime and other gruesome things. It’s about owning my fear.