Audio excerpts now available from Broken! And Death it calls as the stone crow breaks. Streaks of blood malform its face.Death becomes its withered eyes and the shadows whisper, “Lies.” Broken shows you what trauma is like for some survivors years later, and what it looks and feels like to emerge from the mental cocoon […]
Confronting the Past
I am a mother of three and a philosopher. I’ve been married twice. I am a weak agnostic/atheist. I’ve dedicated most of my life to defining why we are here, if there is a god, and studied topics such as the history of philosophy, religion, psychology, and anthropology. I’ve spent years examining early civilization and […]
Broken: Preface
I wrote Broken for me, but published it for you for a number of reasons. First, psychological speaking, this is all very cool. Second, my children have suffered from my conditions and my only goal is to help them and undo the damage I have caused. This ties into my third reason: I hope others […]
Another Sea
I dreamed last night. It wasn’t a nightmare, but… The feeling it evoked is still with me. Like I laid down in a garden with him and there was peace. And I loved him, pure and simple. I loved him so completely in that moment and then forever. I was camping with my family. My […]
Official Diagnoses and Overview
3:53 in the morning. Goddamn the muse. I’ve had one REM cycle—I forgot to take my medication for nightmares tonight—and I can’t sleep. I know I’ll crash and pay for this later. I have Nala in my lap. A stuffed lioness cub I cling to like a child when I sleep. I can’t let her […]
Looking back to “Broken”
These are a series of emails exchanged with an ARC reader. As Broken is being launched, the therapy doesn’t pause. I want to show you a few things with these emails. First, this is what it looks like to be a writer. Second, this is the internal struggle I am dealing with even now. […]
ARC praises sung for “Broken”
This is what Joshua Robertson has said about “Broken” Broken is worthy of a reward. Chrysler has an uncanny ability to capture what most people have no concept of understanding. This is the type of literature that social workers and psychologists are forced to read during their internships to give them some understanding of what […]
Can you hear me?
Can you hear me? I’m dying inside? There’s war outside. Can you hear me? All around me are horizons. Everywhere I look, horizons. And I wonder, what’s beyond those hills? I dream of what my life could be. I dream of what my life should be. I dream of worlds beyond me. All around me […]
Broken Timeline
“Broken” timeline After completing the first of two final edits for Dolor and Shadow, I began work on my next project, Bane. I made it three chapters into Bane, when another project—a more emotionally demanding project—came to mind. When the words are ready, they flow and “Broken” poured out of me. 7 March 2015 – […]
Defining PTSD
PTSD isn’t just for the soldier, but within every trauma survivor is a soldier. Trauma can result in symptoms. The problem is, most people don’t recognize their quirky habits as symptoms. I used to work in a call center. I can not describe the amount of mental stress it caused me. Now I know why. […]