Lost Her Mother at 8. Buried the Pain. One Word Finally Broke It Open | Pegotty Cooper

At eight years old, Peggotty Cooper lost her mother and learned to bury her grief. For more than 40 years she carried it silently, until a single word, abandonment, finally broke it open. In this episode of Next Level Healing, Dr. Tara Perry sits down with the co-founder of the Certified Divorce Coach Program and certified family mediator to talk about what happens when you stop burying the pain and start facing it. Peggotty shares how naming what she feared most changed everything, and how that same act of naming is the foundation of 'affect labeling,' the neuroscience-backed method popularized by Doug Noll that deactivates the brain's emotional circuitry and restores rational thinking. She explains how she uses these de-escalation skills to help clients through the high-stakes world of divorce, rebuild relationships with their children, and find their own humanity in moments of crisis. The conversation explores how facing buried emotions like abandonment can lead to a more resilient, mended life.