Conversations from the Heart

#94 - How to Love Someone Without Letting Them Off the Hook

Yvette Erasmus

This tender and deeply resonant episode follows a heartfelt question from listener Cathy: Do I keep talking to my brother, even after all the harm he’s caused?

What unfolds is an intimate exploration of how to stay rooted in our own integrity when we’re torn between love and protection, compassion and accountability, connection and boundaries.  We dive into how to love someone clearly, without collapsing into enabling, appeasing, or pretending.

Cathy shares the painful complexity of loving a sibling who’s caused irreversible harm - some unethical, some illegal - and the grief of wanting connection without pretending the pain never happened.

Warning:  Strong language is used, so be careful if little ones are listening in! 

📝 Shownotes:

  • Do you have to forgive to love someone again? (Minute 12)
  • What to say when someone you love won’t take responsibility (Minute 20)
  • The difference between “enabling” and “accepting” (Minute 27)
  • A real-life script to stay honest and kind (Minute 35)
  • How to protect your inner child in hard family relationships (Minute 41)
  • Why punitive force backfires - and what to do instead (Minute 50)

This episode is a masterclass in the art of loving honestly, and in choosing relationship without gaslighting yourself.

Feeling overwhelmed with the current state of the world? You're not alone, and I can help. Join me on Thursday, May 29th as I host The Soft Revolution Begins With You: Living Love As Daily Resistance. This FREE webinar will explore how to stay rooted in love when the world feels harsh, broken, or chaotic and what it means to live your values as a form of daily resistance. Sign up today!

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