Road to Recovery Webinar - January 2026

Road to Recovery - January 2026

This Road to Recovery webinar featured Hallie Roderick and Morgan Ellsworth discussing how to support children affected by betrayal trauma in the family, emphasizing that children experience profound impacts including emotional trauma, cognitive distortions, behavioral changes, spiritual questioning, sexual confusion, and family dynamic disruptions even when parents attempt to shield them from the truth.

Hali and Morgan stressed that children are highly attuned to household tension and will create their own narratives (often self-blaming) when information is withheld, making age-appropriate disclosure essential to prevent gaslighting and help children make sense of what they're witnessing and feeling.

They outlined a framework for family disclosure that varies by developmental stage—from basic reassurance for young children (3-7) to honest conversations with teenagers—emphasizing this is not a one-time event but an ongoing culture of openness where parents consistently initiate check-ins and model healthy conflict resolution.

They also discussed that both parents should ideally participate in disclosures when emotionally stable (not in crisis mode), never weaponize the other parent's pain or make them the "bad guy" to children, and provide age-appropriate information that validates what kids are sensing without gaslighting them about the family's reality.

Register for the next free Road to Recovery Webinar here: https://www.chooserecoveryservices.co...