Ronni and Jennie are sharing their story of growing up with addiction, abuse, and untreated mental illness in their childhood home, to raise awareness around childhood trauma and the damage it does to both individuals and sibling relationships. Ronni has a PhD is Sociology (specializing in family studies); Jennie is a board-certified family nurse practitioner who has worked for nearly 30 years in family practice and mental health. Drawing on their personal and professional experiences, they explore the ups and downs of recovery-- sharing how they've worked to find individual healing, to repair/rebuild their relationship, and to break the intergenerational cycle of trauma and abuse as they built families of their own. Their intention is to assist and uplift others who are walking the same path in trying to heal from childhood trauma--to show them that it is possible to build healthy, joyful lives of their own!
Ronni and Jennie are sisters who were not supposed to be friends. They grew up in a home with addiction, abuse, and untreated mental illness, which generated dysfunctional dynamics that often pitted them against each other. Miraculously, they came together in adulthood to help each other heal. Now, drawing on their personal and professional experiences, they are telling their story to help others recover from childhood trauma and abuse, mend their own sibling relationships, and live joyfully. They invite you to join them in this healing conversation.
Please feel free to share your own experiences, or ask questions, via their website: www.ronniandjennie.com (other free content is also available there), or follow them on Instagram: @ronni_and_jennie.
Ronni Tichenor is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at State University of New York--Polytechnic Institute, specializing in family studies; Jennie Weaver is a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner with over 25 years' experience in family practice and mental health. They detail their story in their book, Healing Begins with Us: Breaking the Cycle of Trauma and Abuse and Rebuilding the Sibling Bond.
