❤️‍🩹 Talking about Trauma - A Friendly Reminder for the Forum Family

[BryWisteria]

Warm greetings to all!

To forum family members both new and old, this is a gentle reminder about mindful sharing in the forum.

Thanks to all of the wonderful people (you!) who frequent this space, the Spells8 Forum offers a welcoming and supportive place to share magick and chat with fellow practitioners. It’s a warm and cozy place to be!

As such, we are truly blessed that so many people feel comfortable in opening up and sharing things on their minds and in their hearts. The coven loves to celebrate successes, and can alternatively offer a safe haven for when a coven member wants to work out a problem or release some tension after a tough day

While there is absolutely nothing wrong with sharing occasional difficulties or seeking some advice from your fellow coven members, please keep in mind that the coven is made up of a wonderfully diverse group of individuals from all over the world, in all stages of life, and with many ongoing situations and struggles of their own.

Depending on their life circumstances, people can handle and react to content in different ways. Something that may feel harmless to one person may be very upsetting to someone else.

As such, the forum has implemented several protective barriers that we use to help keep all members of the community safe and at ease so that you can continue to enjoy your time here in the forum

Here are some of the safety measures of the forum everyone can use!

- Forum Safety Measures -

Posting in A Sacred Space

A Sacred Space is a more private, members-only category within the forum. Due to its exclusivity, it cannot be accessed by Google searches and remains for the eyes of the coven only.

If you think that what you are discussing is sensitive, controversial, or potentially upsetting in nature, please post it in A Sacred Space where it will be safe with the coven.

(A gentle reminder that while A Sacred Space can house more sensitive and personal topics, any posts that go against the Forum Rules & Guidelines will be removed)

Trigger Warnings

Adding a small note (such as “TW” or “Warning!”) in the title of your new discussion or at the top of your post or reply is an easy but effective way to let others know that you’re about to discuss something sensitive.

For information about trigger warnings as well as a list of common triggers, please visit the Always Be Civil section of the Forum Rules & Guidelines. Thank you!

Protective Blur

During your time in the forum, you may occasionally come across text that is blurred: it looks like this!.

If you move your mouse or cursor over the blurred text, you will see a little preview. If you then click on the blurred text it will become visible- give it a try on the blurred text in the line above!

Using a protective blur is a great way to hide content and words that may be uncomfortable for others to see and prevents them from reading it accidentally. It is easy to use- simply highlight the text you wish to hide, click on the gear icon () in the tool box above your text, and select " Blur Spoiler!". The text will be hidden under the protective blur.

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The above safety measures are designed to allow users the freedom to share openly while also protecting certain members of the community.

These safety measures are used daily by your friendly Moderator Team- if you see a Moderator edit or relocate your post, it is nothing personal and not a strike against you- we are simply doing our job to keep help keep the forum a safe, tidy, and welcoming place to be.

Anything you can do to help (such as using the safety measures above) is greatly appreciated!

- Banned Content -

On a more serious note, although the safety measures above allow the forum to handle certain kinds of sensitive content, it must be noted that the forum is not able to host posts that deal with significantly triggering matters.

Regardless of the individual qualifications some members may have, please keep in mind that the purpose of the Spells8 Forum is to provide a wholesome place for magickal education and discussion. The forum is not currently equipped to be a therapy service, is not licensed as a medical practice, and is thus not legally allowed to provide or claim to offer such services.

As such, please remember that the Forum Rules & Guidelines prohibit trauma dumping- a behavior that, although often done without any ill intent by the poster, can cause significant harm to a community, especially to the more sensitive members of that community.

The Spells8 Forum Guidelines

• Please refrain from trauma dumping. While the community here is very open and supportive, the forum is not equipped to handle situations of intense psychological distress. (If you are in need, please know that help is available to you through many free official mental health resources.)

In addition to those who may be triggered by traumatic content, this forum attracts many energy users, sensitive people, Empaths, and other kind souls who are easily affected and can be hurt by reading about difficult and stressful situations, especially when those situations are shared repeatedly.

- A Safe Haven for All -

As you continue to enjoy and explore the wonderful content here in the forum, we ask that you please help to keep this a safe haven for all magick-users by keeping the needs of your fellow coven members in mind!

Please be mindful of others by:

1. Using the provided safety measures (A Sacred Space, Trigger Warnings, Protective Blurs) when posting sensitive content

2. Refraining from posting extremely sensitive content and trauma dumping

3. When in doubt, leave it out (or reach out to a Moderator for guidance!)

A little bit goes a long way when it comes to keeping everyone protected- thank you so much for helping us maintain the balance between open sharing and safety, and for helping to keep the Spells8 Forum a safe haven for magick users!

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Thank you so much!

Although safety is a very important topic, I know this was a long and not particularly joyful post to read through- so thank you so much to everyone who read to the end!

With this important reminder out of the way, please jump back into your daily magickal learning and exploring- I hope you continue to enjoy the forum!

Lots of love and blessed be

[MeganB]

We have a lot of new members lately – I just want to bump this topic as a reminder

[Susurrus]

Great idea, we do have quite few lovely new members!

[BryWisteria]

I found myself wandering back here and realized it’s been a while since it was shared- we’ve had many new faces joining us over the past few months (welcome! ), so bumping this post to bring it back into the light

[MeganB]

We have a lot of new, wonderful members here in the coven family it’s been a while since this was bumped so here I am bumping for our newer members!

[Jeannie1]

Ooo like that I can see many perspectives for example, example the trauma dumping thing, I like that people are able to share and I understand that it could be very psychological for some people so you know this is why it’s important to always blur out things like if you feel like it’s gonna be a trigger than to make sure that you say oh yeah, this is triggering or something like to that nature . And that’s all I got for now. Also, I know cite cite! Does anybody know how I can create my own stuff like for memes or any platform that can help my creativity?
Jeannie

[katharina]

Thank you for your work @BryWisteria and bringing back this important information!

[Moonbeam]

@BryWisteria I fully understand the importance of this issue for all coven members. Thank you for the post.

Saturday Blessings

[BryWisteria]

@Jeannie1

if you feel like it’s gonna be a trigger than to make sure that you say oh yeah, this is triggering or something like to that nature .

Exactly! It can be challenging at times to balance between open sharing while also respecting the safety of others, so a little mindfulness when posting goes a long way. Thank you for your understanding, Jeannie!

@Jeannie1

Does anybody know how I can create my own stuff like for memes or any platform that can help my creativity?

I use and really enjoy Canva - it’s a graphic design platform that makes designing and creating images easy (and fun!). I believe there is a free version that folks can use to try it out.

Happy creating!

@katharina

Thank you

You’re welcome, Katharina!

@Moonbeam

I fully understand the importance of this issue for all coven members. Thank you for the post.

Thank you very much for your understanding, Moonbeam! Blessings and love to you too

[Jeannie1]

Hello everyone hope you’re having a good day!!!

I’m trying not to trauma bond I get it !!

I have a question?
I wasn’t sure if this is trauma bonding, but you know today I had something happen where I thought I had my job through San Juan School District, but apparently they said that I had something on my record, but I don’t have any misdemeanors or felonies so I thought that was strange but anyhow, I know that I did have an occurrence back in the day 20 years ago and is this like not appropriate to talk about because it’s trauma ? I mean, everybody has their own level of trauma and I guess what I call it is trauma bonding. Some people are more inclined to share trauma because they don’t know what else or how else to connect without really like stepping on someone’s toes or triggering somebody I just don’t know. I guess my question is this too much like do you not want any trauma bonding?
Is this the lounge? I guess I feel bad I don’t know when and if this is crossing a boundary?
Jeannie

[BryWisteria]

Hi Jeannie!

@Jeannie1

I have a question?

It’s a good question! When it comes to trauma dumping, it can be hard to distinguish what is trauma dumping and what is just regular venting. Here is a more detailed explanation that compares the differences between the two:

Emotional dumping , also informally referred to as trauma dumping , is a psychological phenomenon that was coined in the 2020s, describing the act of sharing traumatic or otherwise emotionally intense experiences without appropriate boundaries or consideration of the consent of the listeners. It stands in contrast with venting—which involves sharing difficult experiences and emotions in a mutually considerate and beneficial manner—whereas emotional dumping represents a distinct pattern of inappropriate or overwhelming disclosure that can strain relationships and worsen the mental health of both parties. From Wikipedia: Emotional dumping

Everyone has rough days at times, and it can be helpful to “let off steam” in supportive places. It’s fine to share about a tough moment here in the coven! But when the content being shared is heavier or more sensitive than just a normal bad day, that is when things approach the line of trauma dumping. The heavier the content and the longer the situation goes on, the more stressful it is for bystanders, and the more likely it is to inflict the harm that trauma dumping brings.

@Jeannie1

everybody has their own level of trauma

This is a good point! Everyone has different experiences, and what someone might consider to be traumatic might be perfectly normal for someone else. Because of this, it can be hard to know what types of content are “traumatic”. To help with this, we’ve made a Talking About Mature Content Guide that lists subjects that are generally considered to be more difficult, sensitive, and, in some cases, illegal.

One helpful perspective is that the forum is a magickal santuary and home to practicing magick users as young as 13 years old. So, if in doubt about sharing something, ask - is this something I would share with a young teenager? Is it something that could be said on daytime TV, or on the public radio? If not, then it’s probably not something to share in the forum.

I hope that helped clarify things a bit more. Thank you for asking the question and also thank you for always being so considerate of fellow coven members. Your thoughtfulness is always appreciated!

[Jeannie1]

Thank you, Bree and this goes back to how the craft really helps me and I had some time to think about my “venting”and I figured well. It is the craft and it is witchcraft so if I want to share, I will include it in my craft so I’m not effecting others with my state. I guess I could transmute the energy and share how I transmute it so I can show how to be a witness and observer in a scence.
I will definitely have to revisit this because like you said this

@BryWisteria

. To help with this, we’ve made a Talking About Mature Content Guide that lists subjects that are generally considered to be

Awesome because maybe this will help in my own life cause we got to keep it simple!
And thank you for sharing the venting, trauma, dumping, post traumatic stress syndrome ! I see
Jeannie

[BryWisteria]

@Jeannie1

I guess I could transmute the energy and share how I transmute it so I can show how to be a witness

This sounds like both a creative and empowering way to transform a difficult situation into something you can control and work with. I love this, Jeannie, and I’m cheering for you!

Thank you again for your understanding and consideration. Much love and many blessings!