Choosing Freedom and Joy After Trauma: Mary Firestone and Mirjam Paninski in Conversation

Feb 24, 2023

In this insightful conversation, Mary Firestone shares her harrowing experience of surviving the Montecito mudslide while pregnant, a trauma that ignited her journey toward healing. As the founder of Firestone Sisters Inc. and author of "Trusting the Dawn," she reveals how trauma can become a catalyst for joy. Topics such as diverse healing methods—from yoga to aromatherapy—are discussed, along with the importance of community and resilience in overcoming adversity. Mary emphasizes embracing complexity and finding strength through what we've endured.

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ANECDOTE

Montecito Mudslide Experience

Mary Firestone survived the 2018 Montecito mudslide while pregnant.
This traumatic experience, where she lost her home and was separated from her family, became a catalyst for her healing journey.

INSIGHT

Trauma as a Catalyst for Growth

Trauma can be a catalyst for growth and positive change.
Firestone's book, "Trusting the Dawn," offers tools for healing and finding joy after trauma.

INSIGHT

Broadening the Definition of Trauma

Trauma is not limited to severe events.
Even seemingly small experiences can create trauma responses if they threaten one's sense of safety.

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Mary Firestone survived the unthinkable. In 2018 she lived through the Montecito mudslide that dropped 200 million gallons of rainfall in 15 minutes, washing away her home. Trapped alone in her bathroom while pregnant, not sure if her husband and four-year-old son were still alive, she wasn’t thinking that her trauma was a gift in disguise. Yet, as she began her journey to healing, this is exactly what she discovered.

In her book, Trusting the Dawn, Firestone draws from both her own real-life experiences and her background in clinical psychology to offer a radical, integrative handbook for not only healing from trauma but awakening to even more joy and meaning because of your experiences. Stories of triumphant survival and interviews with experts bring to life an extensive resource guide and a holistic toolkit filled with a wide variety of pathways to healing―from movement therapies like yoga, to aromatherapy and flower essences, to traditional talk therapy and support groups, to pharmacology and Chinese medicine, to mystical healing methods, and much more.

Central to Firestone’s teachings is the idea that your trauma, in whatever form it slayed you, can become an initiation into a fuller, more illuminated, and more joyful life. Trusting the Dawn is a call to action to see that you are more complex, multi-dimensional, connected, and powerful, not in spite of what you’ve been through, but because of what you’ve endured.

Mary Firestone is a graduate of Princeton University and has an MA in clinical psychology from Pepperdine University. Her own transformative epiphanies led her, along with her sister Lucy, to create their company Firestone Sisters Inc. in 2012, with the aim of providing others with healing and growth opportunities. She's been featured in Goop, Well+Good, and Forbes.

Mary's website is: https://www.maryfirestone.co/

Mirjam Paninski is filling in as host of High Energy Health while Dawson is traveling.

Her website is: https://www.mirjampaninski.com/

#eft #eftuniverse #highenergyhealth #mindtomatter #blissbrain #joy #trauma #freedom #trustingthedawn