Exclusive Content:

1st Grader Picks Out Green Dress for Picture Day—The Results Leave Mom Cry-Laughing

“This is the story of a little girl’s love of a green dress, a mother who tries to instill independence, and how those two things came together in the most epic and brilliant combination possible."

Student’s Humble Plea to Teacher at the Bottom of His Test Goes Viral for All the Right Reasons

"This note gave me so much hope. Let us all be a little more like this young man!!"

Gretchen Schmelzer

Gretchen Schmelzer, PhD, is a licensed psychologist who has worked for twenty-five years with the complex issues of trauma, integration, and behavior change across every level, from individuals to groups to large systems and countries. She has more than a decade of experience working with traumatized children and adolescents in residential treatment and psychiatric units. She is the founder and editor of The Trail Guide, a web-mag featured on gretchenschmelzer.com dedicated to healing repeated trauma and the author of Journey Through Trauma.

The Letter I Wish I Could Write You. Love, Your Teenager.

"I used to know who I was, who you were, who we were. But right now I don’t. Right now I am looking for my edges and I can sometimes only find them when I am pulling on you. When I push everything I used to know to its edge. Then I feel like I exist and for a minute I can breathe."