The Phoenix Project: Turning Pain Into Purpose

The following episode contains discussions of domestic abuse, coercive control, PTSD, suicide attempts, chronic illness, and trauma. Listener discretion is advised. If you\'re currently struggling or in crisis, please contact emergency services in your area or reach out to a crisis support line for immediate assistance.Sarah Danette shares her story of leaving a nine-year marriage only to face continued coercive control, severe PTSD, financial abuse, and chronic illness while parenting and studying. She describes the effects on her body and mind, a suicide attempt, and the retraumatizing experiences with legal systems.The episode explores how post-separation abuse unfolds, practical steps toward safety, the connection between trauma and physical health, and survivor-led supports for healing and rebuilding.

Jennifer Chandler of The Phoenix Project explores how trauma lives in the nervous system, explaining fight, flight, freeze, and fawn responses and the physiological impact of prolonged stress.She shares why healing involves helping the body learn safety again, not just changing thoughts, and discusses somatic perspectives that reframes symptoms as survival adaptations rather than weaknesses.Jennifer also introduces Artemis Coaching and Company, LLC, her trauma-informed practice offering nervous system regulation, Reiki, integrative health coaching, and practical tools to help women rebuild self-trust and boundaries.This episode offers compassionate, practical guidance and hope for anyone moving from survival toward safety and reclaiming who they are beneath survival mode.

There are wounds we leave physically… but still carry in the body long after the relationship ends.
In this deeply honest conversation, Jennifer Chandler sits down with somatic and energy practitioner Mica Louise to talk about survival, trauma, nervous system dysregulation, toxic relationship patterns, and what it truly means to feel safe again.
Mica shares her personal journey through addiction, abusive relationships, dissociation, and the moment everything changed after a life-altering flashback at 40 years old. Together, Jennifer and Mica explore how trauma lives in the body, why survivors often feel stuck even after leaving unhealthy environments, and how somatic healing can help women reconnect with themselves.
This episode is a powerful conversation about disconnection, regulation, self-trust, and coming home to your body after years of survival mode.
Topics include:• Nervous system healing• Somatic healing & body connection• Trauma & survival responses• Toxic relationship patterns• Dissociation & emotional numbness• Learning to feel safe again• Reiki & energy work• Rebuilding identity after trauma
If this episode resonated with you, please follow, share, and leave a review to help us continue spreading awareness and survivor-led conversations.
The Phoenix ProjectTurning Pain Into Purpose 🔥
Contact: phoenixprojectvoices@gmail.com

In this episode of The Phoenix Project, Joycee Reynolds shares her story of surviving childhood abuse and the lifelong patterns it created—patterns she didn’t even realize she was living inside of.
For years, what felt like love was actually familiarity… wired into her nervous system from a childhood marked by fear, unpredictability, and silence.
She opens up about:
Growing up in an environment where safety didn’t exist
How trauma shaped her identity, self-worth, and relationships
Why she repeatedly found herself in abusive dynamics
The moment everything finally clicked—and she saw the pattern clearly
What healing actually looks like (and why it’s not what people think)
This conversation isn’t just about trauma—it’s about awareness.
Because once you see the pattern…you can’t unsee it.
And that’s where everything begins to change.
If you’ve ever confused love with fear, ignored your intuition, or stayed in something that didn’t feel right—this episode will speak directly to you.
You are not broken.You were conditioned to survive.
 

In this episode, Christine Dillard shares her journey through coercive control, the health and emotional toll of staying, and how telling the truth and writing her book helped her reclaim her identity.Listeners will hear practical signs of abuse, the hard work of truth-telling and healing, and a message of community, hope, and resources for anyone feeling trapped or unsure about leaving.

Who are you after trauma?
When your life has been shaped by survival, coercion, or exploitation… reconnecting with your identity can feel overwhelming—and sometimes impossible.
In this episode of The Phoenix Project, Jennifer Chandler is joined by licensed marriage and family therapist, clinical sexologist, and AASECT-certified sex therapist and supervisor, Wendy Haggerty.
Together, they explore what it really means to rebuild your sense of self after trauma.
This conversation dives into:
How trauma and exploitation impact identity
Performance-based survival vs. authentic self
Shame, grief, and disconnection
Reclaiming your voice, boundaries, and body
Healing your relationship with sexuality
Learning to say no—and mean it
Moving from survival into true self-connection
If you’ve ever felt disconnected from who you are… this episode will help put language to what you’ve been feeling—and remind you that you are not broken.
You are still there.
And you can come back to yourself.
This is The Phoenix Project—where we are turning pain into purpose, one step at a time.
📩 Contact / Support:phoenixprojectvoices@gmail.com
🔗 Connect + Resources:
https://linktr.ee/phoenixprojectvoices
trauma recovery, coercive control, healing after abuse, identity after trauma, survivor healing, emotional abuse recovery, trauma podcast, sexual trauma healing, boundaries and self worth, reclaiming identity, trauma informed, survivor story, healing journey, phoenix project podcast

In this deeply moving episode of The Phoenix Project, Jennifer Chandler sits down with Michele Reneé Stone to explore the often unspoken reality of losing yourself after trauma—and the journey back to reclaiming who you are.
Michele shares her personal story of early trauma, dissociation, and the long-term impact of not being able to trust her own intuition. Together, they unpack how identity loss develops over time through survival patterns like people-pleasing, self-betrayal, and emotional shutdown.
This conversation dives into the hidden effects of trauma on the nervous system, including emotional flashbacks, inner criticism, and the struggle to make even the smallest decisions.
But more importantly, this episode offers hope.
Through honest reflection and practical insight, Jennifer and Michele discuss what it actually looks like to begin rebuilding—from learning to recognize your needs, to taking small, intentional steps toward self-trust, self-expression, and healing.
This is a conversation for anyone who has ever felt disconnected from themselves and wondered:
“Who was I before everything changed?”
You are not broken.You are rebuilding.And that version of you still exists.
 
trauma recovery
domestic violence
coercive control
emotional healing
PTSD
complex PTSD
survivor story
healing journey
mental health
self discovery
identity loss
nervous system regulation
women empowerment
personal growth
self healing

You don’t need to be physically harmed to be trapped.
In this episode of The Phoenix Project, we break down the psychological reality of coercive control — the invisible form of abuse that slowly reshapes your thoughts, your identity, and your sense of what’s real.
This isn’t about obvious violence.This is about manipulation, isolation, fear, and control that happens quietly — often without anyone else seeing it.
We talk about:• How coercive control actually works• Why survivors don’t “just leave”• The psychological impact of grooming and manipulation• How reality gets rewritten over time• The long-term effects that follow survivors even after they leave
If you’ve ever questioned your own reality, felt confused in a relationship, or struggled to explain what happened to you — this episode will put words to what you experienced.
You are not crazy.You were controlled.
🔥 This is The Phoenix Project — where survivors reclaim their voice.
 
coercive control, psychological abuse, emotional manipulation, grooming psychology, trauma recovery, survivor story, domestic violence awareness, hidden abuse, trauma bonding, gaslighting, coercion, manipulation tactics, survivor healing, abuse education, trauma informed

This is where it started.Before I had the words. Before I understood what was happening.
In this episode, I share the beginning of my story — how grooming, coercive control, and manipulation slowly took hold without me even realizing it.
This is not just about what happened… it’s about how it happens.
If you’ve ever questioned your reality, felt confused in a relationship, or blamed yourself for something you couldn’t explain — this episode is for you.
You are not alone.
🎙️ The Phoenix ProjectTurning pain into purpose
📩 phoenixprojectvoices@gmail.com
Topics covered: coercive control, grooming, emotional abuse, trauma recovery, trauma bonds, manipulation, healing after abuse, survivor advocacy
 
 
 

The Phoenix ProjectTurning pain into purpose
In this episode, I share the moment everything shifted—the breaking point where I could no longer ignore what was happening.
There comes a point where survival isn’t enough anymore. Where the confusion, the emotional exhaustion, and the constant internal conflict become too heavy to carry. This was that moment for me.
This episode explores what it feels like when the illusion starts to crack… and the truth becomes impossible to unsee.
If you’ve ever questioned your reality, minimized your experience, or felt stuck between what you know and what you feel—this episode is for you.
You are not alone.
📩 phoenixprojectvoices@gmail.com
Topics covered: emotional abuse, coercive control, trauma awareness, breaking point, survival mode, psychological abuse, awakening, trauma recovery