Episode 48

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Published on:

8th Sep 2025

Why You Stayed, Why You Snapped, Why You’re Still Healing

In this brutally honest episode, Jessica Perini shares how unresolved childhood trauma and codependency led her into the grip of narcissistic abuse. Through brainspotting, somatic healing, and radical self-honesty, she clawed her way out—and is now helping others do the same.

🧠 The psychology of codependency & control

🔥 What reactive abuse actually looks like

🪞 Why narcissists are drawn to high-achieving women

💔 How trauma bonding keeps you stuck in toxic love

🧬 The impact of narcissistic abuse on your body & brain

🌱 Why talk therapy isn’t enough—and what actually works

💫 The long road to forgiveness, grace, and post-traumatic growth


🎙️ What We Talk About:

  • Childhood trauma as the blueprint for toxic love
  • How perfectionism and people-pleasing form early survival patterns
  • Being trauma bonded to someone you don’t even like
  • Narcissism vs codependency: how they mirror each other
  • The hell of gaslighting, silent treatment, and coercive control
  • Why self-awareness alone won't save you—but it starts there
  • Reprogramming your body and brain for a new reality

🔑 Key Takeaways:

“Trauma bonding isn’t love—it’s chemical addiction.”
“Talk therapy didn’t heal me. Somatic work did.”
“Narcissists don’t choose weak women. They choose strong ones to break.”
“You are not crazy. You are conditioned. And you can heal.”



🙌 Why This Episode Matters:

Too many survivors are walking around thinking they're the problem. That they're crazy. That they "should’ve known better." But narcissistic abuse is built to be confusing, soul-crushing, and invisible to the outside world.


Jessica’s story cracks the silence wide open—and offers a way through. If you’ve ever felt like you’re losing yourself in a relationship, like you’re too broken to heal, or like you’re drowning in shame—this episode will bring light to the darkness.


You’re not alone. And it really can end with you.


💬 Connect with Jessica:

  • 📸 Instagram: @jessmowhoa
  • 🌐 Website: www.itendswithullc.com
  • 📚 The Unseen Wounds of Women – Chapter: Lather, Rinse, Repeat… Until You Don’t


🔗 Resources & Links:


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About the Podcast

Survival Mode Disrupted with Leticia R Francis
Disrupted Unapologetic Conversations about Survival Mode
Survival Mode Disrupted is not just a podcast. It's a rebellion.

A raw, unfiltered space where we finally stop pretending we're fine and start telling the truth—the truth about the trauma we've carried, the identities they had to wear to survive, and the radical decisions we made to break free.

Because here's the deal: survival mode isn’t just a season. It’s a damn identity. One that so many were forced to adopt just to get through life, to stay safe, to stay needed, to stay sane. But eventually, it starts costing you more than it protects. Your peace. Your purpose. Your power.

This podcast is for the disruptors—the people who were told to stay small, stay silent, stay grateful for crumbs… and said “hell no.”

Hosted by Leticia, The Survival Mode Disruptor herself—a trauma recovery mentor, speaker, and woman who has lived through the fires of abuse, betrayal, and breakdown and still chose to rise—this show dives deep into the unapologetic exits from survival mode that no one talks about.

You’ll hear from women (and a few brave men) who walked away from toxic relationships, soul-sucking careers, generational dysfunction, religious trauma, cultural expectations, and the lies they were taught to believe about themselves. Not because it was easy—but because staying would’ve killed something sacred inside of them.

These are the stories of bold pivots, quiet courage, and messy but miraculous rebirths.

Each episode is a conversation—a disruption—meant to wake something up in you. Whether it’s a guest sharing the moment they chose themselves for the first time, or Leticia dropping a truth bomb that makes you question everything you’ve normalized, this podcast is here to shake the foundation of your survival mode identity and replace it with something truer. Something freer.

We’re not here for surface-level self-care tips or fake empowerment slogans.

We’re here to talk about what it really takes to:

Reclaim your voice after being silenced.

Reinvent yourself after being broken down.

Rewrite your story when everyone else wants you to stay the same.

Release the guilt of choosing YOU.

This is for those who are done performing. Done pleasing. Done pretending.

It’s for the ones ready to exit survival mode—not slowly, not quietly, but disruptively and unapologetically.

You won’t leave this podcast the same.
You’ll cry. You’ll rage. You’ll laugh.
You’ll see yourself in every story.
And more importantly, you’ll remember who the hell you are.

Welcome to Survival Mode Disrupted.
It’s not just a podcast.
It’s a movement.
And your exit begins here.

About your host

Profile picture for Leticia Francis

Leticia Francis

I am not here to inspire you—I am here to activate you.

As a Survivor, Keynote Speaker, and Trauma Recovery Mentor, I know what it’s like to fight battles no one sees. I also know that breaking free is possible. My work is about disrupting survival mode, exposing trauma-driven success cycles, and giving women the blueprint to reclaim their lives.

🔹 200+ podcast features & speaking engagements
🔹 Global Women of Choice Award Winner 2022
🔹 Creator of the Survival Mode Exit Plan
🔹 Host of Survival Mode Disrupted Podcast