What happens when the things you experienced as a child continue to affect your body, your relationships, your parenting, and your mental health decades later?

In this episode of Shedding the Shame, Tami is joined by Julianna Burmesch, a former school principal, speech pathologist, early brain development trainer, parent educator and author of Life with Less of Me.

Julianna’s memoir explores her childhood growing up with addiction, abuse, neglect and fear, and the long-term impact those adverse childhood experiences had on her physical and emotional health.

We talk about ACEs, or adverse childhood experiences, and why trauma doesn't have to be one catastrophic event to leave a lasting mark. Sometimes it's the repeated arguing, unpredictability, emotional neglect, fear and dysfunction that shape a child's nervous system and follow them into adulthood.

Julianna shares how childhood trauma showed up in her own life, including anxiety, panic, physical health issues and a tendency to retreat when she felt unsafe. We also talk about why people who have experienced trauma can become incredibly good at hiding it, why even successful adults can struggle with unresolved trauma, and how being triggered can temporarily disconnect us from the rational part of our brain.

We get into the importance of finding a trauma-informed therapist, why traditional talk therapy doesn't work for everyone, EMDR, inner-child work, allowing yourself to finally feel the emotions you've spent years suppressing, and the complicated guilt that can come with trying to become a different kind of parent than the one you grew up with.

Most importantly, we talk about breaking generational cycles and learning to release the shame and responsibility we carry for things that were never our fault.

As Julianna puts it: “Shedding the shame means letting go of responsibility for what happened to me.”

If you grew up in a difficult or dysfunctional home, or you've ever wondered why something from your childhood still seems to live in your body today, this conversation is for you.

Life with Less of Me by Julianna Burmesch was published June 23, 2026.

Website: https://www.juliannaburmesch.com/