In this episode of Rise: Hope and Healing After Sexual Betrayal, MaryAnn Michaelis LCSW, CSAT, CPTT, welcomes back Dr. Kevin Skinner to continue Season Two’s series on rebuilding trust. Together they explore why rebuilding trust after betrayal is so complex, especially through the lens of attachment and trauma, based on Sue Johnson's core attachment question: “Are you there for me?”

They explain how trust begins early in life, how it’s shaped by our experiences, and how betrayal trauma can mirror early attachment ruptures—often leading to protest, emotional overwhelm, shutdown, or feeling frozen while waiting for clarity or disclosure. MaryAnn and Dr. Skinner normalize grief, numbness, and uncertainty as natural trauma responses, not signs of failure or weakness.

This episode gently reframes healing: trust doesn’t begin with forcing yourself to trust a partner again. It begins with self-trust, learning to listen to your body and emotions, finding safe support, and allowing honesty about where you truly are. Trust, when it returns, is earned through presence, consistency, and repair—not pressure.

If you’re unsure whether you can trust again—or even trust yourself—this conversation offers compassion, clarity, and hope.

• Trust after betrayal is a process, not a decision

• Betrayal trauma activates deep attachment wounds

• Feeling frozen, numb, or unsure is a normal trauma response

• Self-trust is foundational to healing and boundaries

• Earned trust grows through consistent repair and safety

• The Still Face Experiment – Dr. Edward Tronick A visual illustration of attachment rupture and repair https://iceeft.com

• The Body Keeps the Score – Bessel van der Kolk, MD

• Human Intimacy Conference | March 13–14 Online conference featuring Dr. Skinner, MaryAnn Michaelis, Michelle Mays, Dr. Sheri Keffer, Dr. Karen Strange, Kris Cristiano, and more

Host: MaryAnn Michaelis, LCSW, CSAT, CPTT Guest: Dr. Karen Strange, PhD, LMFT, CSAT, CPTT

Healing from sexual betrayal is not something anyone is meant to navigate alone. In this Season 2 episode of Rise: Hope and Healing from Sexual Betrayal, host MaryAnn Michaelis, LCSW, CSAT, CPTT, is joined by colleague and friend Dr. Karen Strange, PhD, LMFT, CSAT, CPTT, for a deeply compassionate conversation about stabilizing after betrayal and rebuilding trust—first with yourself, and then, if appropriate, with a partner.

Together, MaryAnn and Karen explore betrayal through both clinical insight and lived experience, addressing the profound shock, grief, and disorientation betrayed partners often face. Using Brené Brown’s BRAVING framework, they break down trust into understandable, actionable components while emphasizing that trust is rebuilt through behavior over time, not promises or pressure.

This episode also introduces the powerful Kintsugi bowl metaphor—the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold—as a symbol of post-betrayal healing, growth, and meaning-making after profound rupture.

If you are early in betrayal trauma recovery, struggling with self-doubt, or feeling pressured to “move on” before you feel safe, this conversation offers grounding, validation, and hope.

• Why betrayal trauma often mirrors PTSD

• Stabilization as the first priority after sexual betrayal

• The Kintsugi bowl as a metaphor for healing after being “shattered”

• Why trust is cognitive, not emotional

• Brené Brown’s BRAVING framework applied to betrayal recovery:

  • Boundaries

  • Reliability

  • Accountability

  • Vault (confidentiality and discernment)

  • Integrity

  • Non-judgment

  • Generosity

• Trusting behavior over words

• Gaslighting, self-doubt, and learning to trust your body again

• The role of accountability, support groups, therapy, and sponsors

• Why over-disclosure can retraumatize betrayed partners

• Rebuilding trust with yourself through self-compassion

• Healing takes time—and time is your ally, not your enemy

• Trust is rebuilt through consistent, observable behavior, not urgency

• You are allowed to share your story; your partner owns theirs

• Self-compassion is foundational to stabilization and recovery

• Listening to your body is a powerful form of wisdom

• You can actively engage in healing while you wait for clarity

1. The BRAVING Self-Trust Exercise Write down B-R-A-V-I-N-G and reflect on what you need in each area to rebuild trust with yourself.

2. Daily Self-Compassion Practice Visit self-compassion.org (Kristin Neff, PhD) and choose a brief daily practice to support stabilization, reduce shame, and restore internal safety.

• Brené Brown – BRAVING: Trust Framework

• Kristin Neff, PhD – Self-Compassion Practices

• Therapist-led courses and groups for betrayed partners: humanintimacy.com

Dr. Karen Strange, PhD, LMFT, CSAT, CPTT, is a licensed marriage and family therapist practicing in South Carolina. She brings both professional expertise and lived experience as a betrayed partner, offering deep empathy, wisdom, and hope to individuals and couples healing after betrayal.

MaryAnn Michaelis, LCSW, CSAT, CPTT is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified Sex Addiction Therapist, and Certified Partner Trauma Therapist. She is the founder of HART Recovery Institute (Healing Addiction, Relationships, Trauma) and the host of Rise: Hope and Healing from Sexual Betrayal. MaryAnn is also a recovering betrayed partner and a passionate advocate for trauma-informed, compassionate healing.

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You deserve healing. You deserve wholeness. And you don’t have to do this alone.