In this episode, we sat down with Kristy Dillon—therapist, survivor, and truth-teller—to talk about something that too many people still struggle to say out loud: sexual abuse.

This conversation is raw, honest, and full of the kind of wisdom that only comes from deep healing. If you've experienced abuse—or love someone who has—this episode is for you.

Here’s what we talk about:

• What it’s like to tell your story after years of silence
• How sexual abuse impacts identity, relationships, and trust
• The complicated feelings survivors often have about their abusers
• What healing actually looks like (hint: it's not linear)
• How safe touch, therapy, and community helped Kristy reclaim her body
• The power of saying it out loud—yes, even if it’s messy or imperfect

Trigger warning: We talk about childhood sexual abuse. Please take care of yourself as you listen. You can pause, come back, or skip this one if it’s not the right time.

👉🏼 If this resonates with you, you're not alone. Healing is possible. We're proof.

About Kristy:

Kristy Dillon is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor in Dayton, Ohio with over 30 years of experience in the counseling field. She has been trained in Somatic Experiencing, Developmental and Relational Trauma, and Polyvagal Theory. Over the years, she has worked in Community Mental Health Centers, private psychiatric practice, school-based counseling, and private practice.

Kristy was motivated to earn a degree in Counseling after engaging in her own personal counseling to address sexual trauma she experienced as a child. The profound healing she experienced inspired her to learn how to support others through their own healing journeys.

View Kristy’s profile here.

Find resources mentioned in this episode here.

Learn more about this podcast here.

Submit your 90-second lesson/experience here.

Apply to be a guest here.

Stay updated on new episodes here.

*Information shared on this podcast is not medical advice. If you have a concern about your physical or mental health, please seek support from a proessional.

In this episode, Patti shares her experience of childhood sexual abuse, what healing has looked like over the decades, and why it’s so important that we talk about the things that were buried under shame, silence, or secrecy for way too long.

We’re not getting into graphic details—but we are talking honestly about the emotional toll and long-term impact of being hurt by someone who was supposed to protect you.

Here’s what we dive into:

• How trauma shows up in your adult body, even when your mind doesn’t “remember”
• The difference between being a victim and choosing healing
• The complications of caretaking for the very people who failed to protect you
• How to recognize signs of abuse in children—and why it’s never too late to speak out
• What experiential therapies, boundaries, and nervous system work can do for your healing

This one is vulnerable, raw, and real—but it’s also filled with hope.

If this topic is hard for you, please take care of yourself first. Hit pause if you need to. And know you're not alone.

Resources mentioned:

• Gifts from a Challenging Childhood by Jan Bergstrom
• Running on Empty by Jonice Webb
• The Courage to Heal by Ellen Bass and Laura Davis
• Experiential therapy modalities: ART (Accelerated Resolution Therapy), Gestalt, Inner Child Work

We see you. We’ve got you.

Find resources mentioned in this episode here.

Learn more about this podcast here.

Submit your 90-second lesson/experience here.

Apply to be a guest here.

Stay updated on new episodes here.

*Information shared on this podcast is not medical advice. If you have a concern about your physical or mental health, please seek support from a proessional.

This week, we’re getting real about something that hits close to home.

We’re joined by Jan’s dear friend and fellow therapist Laura Williams, who bravely shares her journey through an unexpected breast cancer diagnosis. Stage zero—no symptoms, no lump, no family history. Just one routine mammogram that saved her life.

In this episode, we talk about:

• How a mammogram caught Laura’s cancer before it spread
• What “stage zero” breast cancer really means
• The wild (and frustrating) realities of navigating treatment
• Radiation, Tamoxifen, and the side effects no one warns you about
• The emotional toll of playing it “fine” while quietly falling apart
• How women are often told to suck it up—even during cancer
• The support systems that carried her, and the ones that surprised her

This is a must-listen for any woman who’s ever put off her appointment or felt dismissed in a medical setting. Let this be your nudge, your hug, and your reminder: you matter, and your health does too.

Go get that mammogram. We mean it.

About Laura:

Laura Williams has known since her early twenties that she was called to this work — but the path to Be Found Counseling has been anything but linear. Three children, three moves, loss and birth, other careers, and her own healing journey have all shaped how she shows up as a counselor today. She looks back and can see that none of it was wasted. Every detour has deepened her belief in the power of mercy, grace, and community.

Being a counselor isn’t just what Laura does — it’s who she is. Every day, she gets to witness hope, healing, and redemption unfold in real time. It’s an honor for her to walk with people as they discover their own worth and learn to live from a place of belonging rather than shame.

While Laura’s faith deeply informs the way she sees the world, she doesn’t practice biblical counseling or label herself a Christian counselor. What guides her is how Jesus lived — bringing people out of shame into dignity, meeting them with compassion and understanding. Whether or not faith is part of someone’s story, her hope is that when they sit together, they experience unconditional love, mercy, and grace.

Laura’s work is shaped by her training with the Healing Our Core Issues Institute (HOCI), where she now serves as a member of the core faculty. The HOCI model focuses on human worth, healthy boundaries, creating meaning out of imperfection, taking responsibility for needs and desires, and cultivating joy and secure connection — both with ourselves and others.

She often says this work offers hope in the wilderness. When life feels overwhelming, lonely, or uncertain, it gives us a place to land — and a foundation we can return to again and again. After experiencing this transformation herself, Laura no longer fears the wilderness. She’s ready to step into it with you.

Laura’s Links:

Website: www.befoundcounseling.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/befoundcounseling

Find resources mentioned in this episode here.

Learn more about this podcast here.

Submit your 90-second lesson/experience here.

Apply to be a guest here.

Stay updated on new episodes here.

*Information shared on this podcast is not medical advice. If you have a concern about your physical or mental health, please seek support from a proessional.