David Taransaud

“Children of depressed mothers suffer a multitude of losses. There’s the loss of the mother’s love and of the mother herself: a mother who’s still alive but psychically dead in the eyes of the child. There’s the loss of belonging and safety, of self and authenticity. And as unmet needs accumulate, the children suffer the loss of self-worth, purpose and meaning in life. Unlike death, these losses tend to go unrecognised. There’s no certificate, no wake and no funeral or scattering of ashes to help with the grieving process. As a result, there’s no closure, no healing and no moving forward – just a heart that hurts, the constant presence of an absence and an urge to fill the void with mother substitutes. Children who have had their hearts broken over and over again are left with a terrible grief that never seems to go away.”
― David Taransaud, Sad Belly: Helping Children of Depressed Parents Build Resilience

“Hurt people don’t just hurt other people, they’re also very good at hurting themselves.”
― David Taransaud, Sad Belly: Helping Children of Depressed Parents Build Resilience