What if the story you were handed was never the one you were meant to keep? What if the parts of your past that felt the most devastating… became the very places where redemption takes root?
In this episode of the Dare to Declare Podcast, Debbi sits down with Lainie Hartley, author, speaker, and former foster child turned cycle breaker, to explore what really happens when a childhood marked by neglect, abandonment, and survival is rewritten through healing, faith, and fierce generational change.
Lainie opens up about the painful realities behind her memoir, Simply Neglect, from going to bed hungry and knocking on neighbours’ doors in search of food, to being surrendered to foster care three separate times by the mother meant to protect her.
She shares openly about the systems that failed her, the shame that followed her into adolescence, and the defining moment when she decided her story would not end where it began.
But this conversation is not just about Trauma.
It’s about the resilience that rises in the cracks, the grace that meets us in the unexpected places, and the profound healing that unfolds when someone chooses to break a cycle instead of repeat it.
As a bio, foster, and adoptive mother, Lainie brings a rare, 360-degree perspective to the child-welfare world. She speaks candidly about Parenting through a trauma-informed lens, the complexities of repairing generational patterns, and how she now uses her voice to advocate for vulnerable children and families.
Her blend of honesty, compassion, and unwavering hope will leave you breathless.
And stay tuned until the end, because there’s a plot twist in Lainie’s story that you will not see coming.
If you’ve ever wondered whether healing is possible for the parts of your story that feel the most broken or whether your past disqualifies you from a redeemed future, this episode will remind you:
– No story is too broken for God to rewrite.
– No cycle is too strong to break.
– And no childhood defines the adult you choose to become.
🎥 Watch This Episode on YouTube👉 Learn more about Lainie Hartley and purchase your copy of Simply Neglect Here
💫 The Dare to Declare Vision Board Magazine & Online Course
🩵Find Debbi on social media!
Instagram
