What Every Soul Needs: A Trauma-Informed Series on Human Needs
Healing begins
when we connect
with what we were always
meant to need.
—Leonarda Gaige, PMHNP-BC, FNP-BC
A reflective healing journey through seven letters exploring 12 cored needs we were always meant to have—and still need for healthy, wholehearted living.
What if the things you’ve struggled with—burnout, disconnection, shame, people-pleasing—weren’t signs of failure, but signs of core needs left unmet in childhood and carried into adulthood?
Author’s Note: This reflection touches on trauma, emotional neglect, and unmet needs. It’s written with care, but please move gently. Take what resonates, and return only when it feels safe to do so.
This blog series, Dear Needs, is a gentle reflection through seven letters written from a witness voice on the 12 core human needs that support emotional, relational, mental, and spiritual well-being. This framework is inspired in part by the work of Tim Fletcher (RE/ACT Recovery), whose model outlines key emotional needs often impacted by complex trauma.
When those needs are honored, we grow. When they’re neglected, manipulated, or withheld—especially in early life or during chronic stress—we adapt, but at a cost.
We shrink. We fawn. We numb out. We overperform. We withdraw. We survive. But we lose our sense of what it means to feel safe, seen, or worthy.
@myjourneycompasshealth1
A steady path begins with slowing down enough to listen.
The Letters We’ll Explore
Rather than presenting these needs as a checklist, we’ve woven them into 7 reflective letters, written from a witness voice—a grounded perspective that holds space without overwhelm. Each letter explores a deeper emotional theme and offers space to reconnect with what you may have learned to live without. They are invitations to begin again, with compassion.
1. Dear Love
Covers: Love & Nurturing
Exploring love that doesn’t demand silence, shrinking, or perfection.
2. Dear Safety
Covers: Safety, Stability, Support
Reclaiming a sense of steadiness—in our bodies, environments, and relationships.
3. Dear Connection
Covers: Connection & Belonging, Validation
The longing to be seen, valued, and accepted without conditions.
4. Dear Understanding
Covers: Understanding
Making sense of our stories and offering ourselves the clarity we were never given.
5. Dear Power
Covers: Empowerment & Expression
Finding voice after silence, choice after control, and worth after invisibility.
6. Dear Boundaries
Covers: Boundaries
Learning that saying no can be a sacred act of self-respect.
7. Dear Freedom
Covers: Freedom & Hope
Creating space for joy, possibility, and living beyond survival mode.
Want to go deeper?
Pieces scattered
can still be
gathered.
Healing isn’t
about perfection—
It’s about reclamation.
The Dear Needs series includes free printable journal companions for each core need—designed to help you reflect gently, consistently, and at your own pace. Each journal offers 7 days of prompts, a progress check-in, and a revisit entry.
Start with the first:
Download → [Dear Love Printable Journal].
A free reflective tool to accompany the first letter in the series: Dear Love.
Let The Healing Journey Begin!
Begin reading the first post: [Dear Love →]
Helpful Resources & References:
Ready to talk? / ¿Lista(o) para hablar?
English:
• Trauma-informed, integrated psychiatric care
• Non-controlled medication management
• For adults, teens, and children ages 6+
Español:
• Atención psiquiátrica integrada y con enfoque en trauma
• Manejo de medicamentos no controlados
• Para adultos, adolescentes y niños a partir de los 6 años
*This blog is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice or establish a provider–client relationship.*
*Este blog es solo para fines educativos y no constituye asesoramiento médico ni establece una relación proveedor–paciente.*