

The Crappy Childhood Fairy Podcast with Anna Runkle
Anna Runkle
I’m Anna Runkle, also known as the Crappy Childhood Fairy, and I teach people to recognize and heal the symptoms of Childhood PTSD. Welcome to my podcast!I’m not a doctor or therapist; I know about childhood trauma because I lived it, and I discovered a radical approach to healing that focuses first on calming neurological dysregulation, which is common in people who grew up with abuse and neglect. In my podcasts, I teach about dysregulation – how to know if you have it, what it can do to your body, your thinking and your relationships, and what to do to master re-regulation. When I learned this, everything in my life got suddenly easier. I’ll also be teaching you to heal the life problems that so often develop after years of living dysregulated – feeling tired, isolated and unfocused, finding yourself always drawn to unavailable and inappropriate partners, and falling WAY short of your professional potential, for example. The thing about me is, traditional therapies never seemed to help me. When I found techniques that did work, my whole life changed. Only in the past few years has the trauma research caught up to explain why – why the techniques I use worked, why therapy didn’t, and why my healing journey was so unnecessarily long. I’ve been teaching what I learned for more than 20 years now. It started with friends who had noticed the quick and dramatic change in me, and gradually grew by word of mouth. In 2016, I had so many people seeking instruction that I made my first online video, and then an online course, and this is how Crappy Childhood Fairy was born. My techniques and principles are practical yet powerful – an approach anyone can use, whether or not you have access to professional help. In this podcast, I’ll be talking about the master of self-regulation, and teach the tough-love life-lessons that you may not have learned at home – like how to date so that stable love finds you, how to get ahead at work, and how to calm the negative hamster-wheel thoughts that block your ability to connect with other people. Today, almost half a million people follow my work and participate in my training and coaching programs. My mission is to change the paradigm of what’s possible for people like us, and to help you free yourself from the oppression of trauma wounds, and to become your full, happy and real self. I’m glad you’re here! Watch new videos on my YouTube channel every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and access my videos, courses and free tools at crappychildhoodfairy.com.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 29, 2022 • 19min
CPTSD and The Aversion to Decent People Who Treat You Well
People who grew up in dysfunctional, neglectful families often find themselves attached to people who are LESS functional than themselves, and uncomfortable around people who are kind, decent, and living their lives well. Given that friends and associates are an important factor in how our own lives turn out, why would we sabotage ourselves like that? In this episode, I respond to a commenter with an interesting suggestion WHY good people feel "wrong" for us.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 25, 2022 • 15min
Emotional Intoxication vs Emotional Sobriety: How to Heal A Little Each Day
People who were abused and neglected as children sometimes struggle to stay emotionally "regulated." Part of healing is to learn to self-regulate; this is a skill that, in substance recovery programs is called "Emotional Sobriety." Is it the same with trauma? In this episode, I talk about ways to determine when you're emotionally "intoxicated", how to become emotionally sober, and the signs that you're making progress.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 22, 2022 • 7min
How to Apologize Beautifully
You know how when people give you a bad apology it makes you feel worse? Here's how to apologize the good way, the way that actually makes things better.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 18, 2022 • 23min
CPTSD & The Toxic Love of Unavailable Partners: How to Get Free
When you were starved for love and attention as a child, it harmed you emotionally, psychologically, and neurologically, even if the wounds didn't show. Neglect can cause problems connecting with people, detecting red flags, and discerning when a person has your best interests at heart (and who is just using you). In this episode, I answer a letter from a woman who is worn out from a four-year relationship with a man who sees her just once a week for a few hours. Hear how I help her read the red flags and make a plan to change her life.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 15, 2022 • 37min
Childhood PTSD Makes It Hard to Discern Good Partners: Here Are Some Signs
Childhood PTSD can make all relationships seem frustrating and sometimes confusing, even when they're good. Is it your trauma symptoms, or is someone just not a good fit for you? In this episode, I respond to a letter from a young woman in a long-term relationship who finds herself reluctant to commit, AND reluctant to leave. Listen to my suggestions for her to determine if her boyfriend is a "keeper."
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 11, 2022 • 22min
These CPTSD Treatments Don't Work. Here's What Does
When it comes to Complex PTSD, research has shown almost no definitive pattern of effectiveness associated with any particular approach to treatment. Thousands of practitioners and agencies claim that they treat the effects of childhood trauma, but do their approaches work? In this episode, I go through some of the popular treatments available and tell you what we know about them.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 8, 2022 • 15min
Why I Quit Therapy
If I had it to do over again, I would have stopped going to therapy long before I did. Most commenters on this channel told me they felt the same way; a few were astonished and wanted to know more. In this video, I explain WHY therapy not only didn't help me heal from Childhood PTSD / CPTSD, but how it put me at risk. Be sure to watch until the end! I talk about what DID enable me to heal, and the need for more self-determination around our own healing.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 3, 2022 • 11min
CPTSD Therapists - Here's What To Look For
So many people who endured abuse and neglect as children are STILL waiting to find real help for their trauma-related problems today. You hear people say “oh you should go to therapy --it totally changed my life!" and you think "I WISH I could find something like that but WHERE?" In this podcast, I teach you ten qualities to look for in a therapist who can help you heal from CPTSD.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Nov 1, 2022 • 31min
LIMERENCE: To Heal Obsession, Heal Wounds of Neglect
People whose childhood emotional needs were neglected are often drawn into "limerent" relationships -- an infatuation or obsession with someone unavailable, uninterested, or unknown to you. This consuming kind of love (that gives nothing back) can devastate your happiness and leave you chronically isolated. In this episdoe, I answer a letter from a woman who has loved a man she barely knows for years. Find out how to spot the signs of limerence, and what you can do to heal.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf

Oct 28, 2022 • 36min
Magical Thinking Saved Your Childhood (But NOW It's Ruining Your Life)
As a child, you developed the ability to use "magical thinking" to cope with abuse and neglect, but NOW, as an adult, it just might be blocking you from ever escaping troubled relationships, finding inner strength, and living a full life. In this episode, I answer a letter from a woman who endured profound neglect as a child and has used magical thinking to tolerate rejection and grief as she lives in the house of an ex for who she still has romantic feelings.
Take my FREE Course or Quizzes: https://bit.ly/40M2YeW
Enroll in my Courses or Membership: https://bit.ly/3HP5qcf