“I Just Knew I Had to Get Out”: Pamela's Raw Journey from Trauma to Freedom
Episode #0032
“Sometimes, freedom doesn’t begin with a passport stamp, it begins with a scream. A silence. A final moment of being unheard.
Pamela Topjian’s story isn’t wrapped up in hashtags or self-help buzzwords. It’s raw, gutting, and beautifully human. On this episode of Whereabouts Tales, she opens up about a journey that started in survival mode and, bit by bit, became something extraordinary.
But let’s rewind a little.
A Girl in California, a Secret in the Shadows
Pamela grew up in sunny California. You’d think beach days and laid-back vibes, right? But behind closed doors, her childhood was anything but breezy. Abuse. Neglect. The kind of experiences that shape your nervous system before you even learn what a nervous system is.
She didn't always have the words for it, but the feeling was constant, something wasn’t right. And that feeling grew louder with time.
When Your Body Remembers What Your Brain Tries to Forget
Pamela shares what it's like to live with Complex PTSD (C-PTSD), not the kind that comes from one moment, but from years of moments stacked like bricks. As a child and young adult, she tried to bury it. Push through. Smile. Perform. She even married young, chasing some idea of stability.
But healing doesn’t happen just because you will it. It often starts when everything else breaks down.
And break down it did.
From Caregiving to Finally Caring for Herself
It was only later, much later, that Pamela started to untangle the trauma. It took a second marriage, a career in healthcare, and a new home far from where the pain began.
That’s when she found hypnotherapy. Not as a curious trend, but as a tool that actually worked for her.
“I didn’t go looking for it,” she says. “It kind of found me.”
What followed was nothing short of a metamorphosis. She trained. She practiced. She healed. And now, she helps others do the same. From trauma to trust, from freezing up to finally feeling safe in her own body, Pamela’s story is a lighthouse for anyone who’s ever felt too broken to begin.
Let’s Be Real: Healing Isn’t Linear, and It Isn’t Pretty
If you’re expecting a neat, linear timeline, you won’t get it here. Pamela’s journey was full of starts, stops, fallbacks, and restarts. But she never lost that tiny ember of “something better is out there.”
There’s no fairy dust in her story, no one-size-fits-all fix. Just grit. Reflection. And, eventually, real peace.
The Power of Saying It Out Loud
What makes Pamela’s presence on Whereabouts Tales so powerful is that she doesn’t sanitize the truth. She’s not trying to be anyone’s guru she’s just someone who made it through. And is now making sure others don’t have to do it alone.
Her message isn’t just for survivors, it’s for anyone who’s ever felt trapped in a version of their life that wasn’t built for them.
What Stays With You After the Episode Ends?
It might be her voice when she says, “I just knew I had to get out.” Or maybe the moment she describes her first real sense of calm in decades. Or her gentle reminder that healing is a processmand you’re allowed to take your time.
Whatever it is, Pamela’s story won’t leave you untouched.
So whether you’re tuning in from your kitchen table, a park bench, or somewhere in between the life you’ve lived and the one you’re creating take this as a gentle nudge.
There’s no perfect time to start over. But there is always time to start.
🎧 Listen to the full episode of Whereabouts Tales with Pamela Topjian now.
And if her story moved you, don’t keep it to yourself share it with someone who needs to hear that healing is possible, even when it feels impossible.
