A powerful story of hidden trauma revealed and healed.
From the outside, Patricia Grenelle’s childhood looked ordinary—a farm, parents and sisters, routines, and what appeared to be a “nice, normal family.” She believed it, completely. But beneath that familiar surface lay experiences no child should endure. In We Were a Nice Normal Family, Patricia, a former forensic psychologist, reveals the childhood sexual abuse, abandonment, and emotional neglect that shaped her life for decades.
Told with honesty and clarity, her story traces the moments that fractured her early years and the lingering effects that followed her into adulthood: complicated relationships, failed marriages, self-doubt, anxiety, and the symptoms of C-PTSD she later came to understand. Patricia also honors her sister Josie, whose parallel suffering gives voice to countless survivors who never had the chance to speak.
More than a memoir, this book offers insight, understanding, and hope. Through personal experience and professional perspective, Patricia illuminates the patterns of trauma and the pathways to recovery—reminding readers that healing remains possible even after years of struggle. Packed with helpful resources for anyone you know who may be suffering in silence.
Perfect for readers of What Happened to You?, The Body Keeps the Score, and survivor-centered memoirs about resilience, truth-telling, and reclaiming one’s life.
About the author:
Patricia A. Grenelle, PsyD, is a retired Forensic Psychologist and survivor of childhood sexual abuse and C-PTSD. She brings dual perspectives to her writing: the raw emotional truth of lived trauma and the clinical expertise of decades studying it. Patricia wrote We Were a Nice, Normal Family to honor her sister, who suffered beside her, and for every survivor who's been told they were "too sensitive," blamed themselves for family dysfunction, or wondered if healing was possible. Through her work, she reaches those who have experienced abuse, helping survivors live more productive, happy lives by understanding what happened and why it still matters. Patricia lives in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona with her husband Ed, a retired US Army Major, and her service dog JP, a Goldendoodle who supports her through her own C-PTSD journey. She encourages readers to help stop childhood sexual abuse, rape, and trauma by supporting the organizations she highlights in her work.
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