Episode 88 - La Cosa Nostra

When you hear the word 'family' what springs to mind for you? You would hope words like 'love', 'support', 'safety' and similar words would be high on your list - but what if the word conjures up a different set of experiences for you? While for some family can be a haven, for others it can be something much different...My guest today is Luigina Giampietro and her story is traumatic in parts, hopeful in others but there are often times when "what happens behind closed doors stays behind closed doors" creates an atmosphere of gaslighting, coercive control and the opposite of what we think of when we talk about family values.Gina grew up in a traditional Italian-American household and as such, straddled two seperate cultures although her parents were more versed in "the old tradition". From the outside looking in, Gina's family appeared to be a postcard image of what a hard-working, middle-class family should aspire to - although it is the things not discussed that give a greater indication of the wellbeing of those within that family.Gina goes on to detail episodes of parental abuse, being scapegoated for when things went wrong, physical violence and many times down the years when she was expected to remain quiet and just let things slide for the sake of family harmony - when all this did was make things worse.Reaching breaking point and deciding that enough was enough, Gina - with the support of her husband and two sons - broke contact with toxic family members in a move that was heartbreaking on a personal level but also 'not the done thing' within a tight-knit, traditional culture which places a high value on the family unit but also more ominously, 'La Cosa Nostra....'Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts:http://www.youtube.com/@SocialHarmonyTimetoTalkhttps://open.spotify.com/show/4aAdbPrTjEEnwco5jII65U?si=998a4105012f4939https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/social-harmony-time-to-talk/id1792776061