Survivor Artist: From the Mud

Painting Description: Textured background that is very rough to the touch, but you can see the grooves. The bottom left of the painting starts dark black and slowly transitions to dark purple and hombre effects into light colors at the top right corner. There is one lotus flower in the center, one to the left, and two to the left in the colors of pink and white. There are abstract blue and green lily pads to complete the aesthetic.

Lotus flowers, much like survivors of complex trauma, have learned to thrive in the most adverse of circumstances. These gorgeous specimens have reclaimed the concept of beauty and what it means to grow something lovely from filth, one that has become a beacon of light for my own healing journey. 15 years ago, I found myself caught in my own murky water and found my own way out 2 years later. Much like a lotus flower, I learned to thrive in the unkind world that helped to create the circumstances leading to my exploitation. One of the hardest lessons I ever had to learn during my 13 year recovery journey was to know when it is time to stop reliving the pain and to let myself heal and enjoy life. The voices of all my abusers past have faded as the years passed, and I slowly learned that I am worthy of love, acceptance, and happiness. They were so loud for so many years that even after I broke free from them, I still could not rid myself of their influence. You’re ugly. You are worthless. You will never find anyone else because no one wants to put up with you. You’ll never find a husband. God hates you. Everyone hates you. No one will help you. You don’t deserve to live. I think I was just afraid that if I let my pain go, I wouldn’t know where I came from or the kind of person I would become. I guess I was afraid that I would lose touch with my reality and forget that it even happened. But then it happened after several YEARS re-programming, re-defining, and re-learning what it means to thrive. I let my beautiful petals grow brighter and lovelier through each season of growth so that I could still have a life full of everything I thought I had lost. I decided I was worthy. Like a lotus, I fought through the murk and the mud to get to the light. And then I became my own light.

Charlie’s art is available for purchase at this link.

Charlie Quinn Tebow, LMSW, survivor, artist

Image description: Caucasian non-binary individual with a big smile in front of a brick building wearing my favorite tie-dye shirt. Wild styled short pixie cut blonde hair

Creator Bio: An alumnus of Washburn University with a clinical Masters of Social Work degree, Charlie dedicates their life to serving others like them, CPTSD (chronic post traumatic stress disorder) survivors. Their day job as a social worker and Missing Youth Specialist on the Kansas Special Response Team for Missing and Exploited Youth provides them with opportunities to empower and engage runaway and exploited youth in foster care to overcome complex and compounded trauma, and find the path to who they want to be. Charlie is a dedicated advocate with specializations for persons who have experienced human sex trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, childhood trauma, interpersonal violence, and other complex or compounded traumas. Charlie is part of the LGBTQ community as a nonbinary person (they/them), and a staunch leader and participant in social justice activism. They are an ally for all trans and/or persons of color, as well as dedicated activist for Black Lives Matter and Trans Lives Matter movements. Charlie is a member of the National Human Trafficking Survivor Network and Survivor Leaders Institute, and has delivered keynote and training sessions to professionals from around the country. Charlie is also an accomplished artist and expert in the healing arts for survivors of complex trauma. Featuring bright colors and textures, their art has been featured in 35 states and sold to patrons from around the globe.

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