Erica Adkins - Rock Bottom is Where Bad Bitches Are Built: Find Your Footing; Conquer the Climb

To get the best experience with this book, Ive found readers who download and use the Rock Bottom is Where Bad Bitches Are Built Workbook are able to implement the concepts faster and take the next steps needed to heal.

You can get a copy by visiting:

www.drericaadkins.com/rockbottom

The opinions and views expressed within this publication are those of the author and do not represent those of the US Army, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Department of Defense, Department of Justice, or the United States Government. Names have been changed in order to protect the privacy of individuals mentioned. Unless where explicitly stated, details and names of individual clients were changed to protect confidentiality. Any likeness or resemblance is coincidental.

The subject matter in this book may be triggering for some individuals. This book is not meant to take the place of individual mental health treatment. If you need assistance, please see the resources section at the end of the book for a list of aids.

Rock bottom. The lowest possible point. Rock bottom can be described as a time when an individual believes things cannot get any worse for them. I can think of quite a few instances in my life where Ive had the thought, this is it. This MUST be rock bottom only to have something worse come along.

During one particularly awful event, I said to my best friend, I dont know how much more of this I can take. I feel like I am always being kicked when Im down. Her response to me was, Erica, rock bottom is where bad bitches are built.

The wisdom in her words reminded me that I had trudged through pain, trauma, heartbreak, healing, more pain, more trauma, and not only lived to tell the tale, but came out on top time and time again. Rising to the top following a traumatic event is not something that comes easily. It takes hard work. It takes perseverance. It takes putting one foot in front of the other. It takes just breathing sometimes.

It began as a freshman at Denison University, I felt "different" from the moment I stepped onto the campus. The parking lot was full of BMWs and fancy SUVs. Students were dressed in clothes I could never imagine being able to afford. My high school principal had warned me that I might not fit in there. I of course set out to prove him wrong, because at 18 years old, I knew everything. He was right. It wasn't the place for me. I met many great friends and wonderful professors. The experience wasn't negative overall, but it wasn't for me. While I was a student there, I experienced sadness and emptiness on a level I had not experienced before. I shared my sadness with a close friend and shared some things about myself that I had only shared with one other individual in middle school. She encouraged me to seek treatment at our counseling center.

There, I met Dr. Jeffry Pollard, a licensed psychologist. Dr. Pollard sat with me. He held my grief and was present and attentive. He metaphorically took my hand and led me to the start of the path of healing. I remember sitting in his office during my first visit. He had stepped into another room to grab some paperwork, and I was admiring his diplomas and degrees on the wall. I thought to myself, "wow! How great would it be to be a psychologist? But I'm not smart enough to do that". Words from a high school mentor/teacher echoed in my head, "Erica you should go straight through and get your Ph.D." my response "But I'm not smart enough to do that." Dr. Pollard helped me to heal, and also helped me by encouraging me to follow my dreams, and by telling me I was smart enough to do whatever I set out to do.

Decades later, I share the same credentials as Dr. Pollard, and I share the same love and compassion for every person I encounter. Over time, I've learned you don't always know the purpose of the path you are on until you reach your final destination, or until something along the way makes it make sense. I know my purpose in life is to help people heal from wounds of trauma.

Recovering from trauma is difficult. Trauma often goes hand in hand with shame, fear, self-loathing, depression, anxiety, etc. Not only am I educated and trained on how to help individuals, families, and communities heal from trauma, but I am a survivor as well. I have experienced childhood trauma, infidelity, suicide of several close individuals, domestic violence, single parenting during moments when I was struggling to survive, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), deployment, a chronic debilitating illness, and an unthinkable trauma happening to one of my daughters.

As a licensed psychologist, my job is to sit with people during their darkest moments, help them find the light, and help them heal the broken parts of themselves. I help them find the courage to keep going - to put one foot in front of the other. In the pages that follow, I want to take you on the journey of my life. Of my pain. I want to show you that pain and trauma can happen to anyone and that you can not only HEAL but you can GROW and THRIVE following horrific incidents.

Is it easy? No. Will it hurt? Hell yes. Do you have to do it alone? Absolutely not. I will show you that you have what it takes to rise above. That when you feel as if you have hit rock bottom and cannot possibly move forward, that is just the beginning, brave and courageous one. This book will be the metaphorical hand reaching down to rock bottom and pulling you back up again so you can continue your journey. After all, rock bottom is where bad bitches are built, so lets get to work!