BRIDEY THELEN-HEIDEL: BRIGHT EYES MEMOIR
This episode of Big Blend Radio features Bridey Thelen-Heidel, advocate and teacher, and author of the memoir, “Bright Eyes: Surviving Our Monsters and Learning to Live Without Them,” (She Writes Press, September 24, 2024).
In “Bright Eyes,” Bridey pens a raw and immersive account of growing up alongside an abusive, narcissistic mother. It’s an astonishing narrative of Bridey’s tenacious spirit, commitment to optimism in the face of unspeakable trauma, and dedication to breaking cycles of abuse.
Bridey is tethered to her mom’s addiction to dangerous men who park their Harley-Davidsons in the house and kick holes in all their doors. Raised to be her mother’s keeper, rescuer, and punching bag, Bridey gets used to stuffing her life into black trash bags, hauling them between Alaska and California, and changing schools every time her mom moves in a new monster—or runs away from one.
Desperately seeking the normal life she’s observed in sitcoms and her friends’ families, Bridey earns her way into a fancy, private college, where she tries to forget who she is—until her mom calls with a threat that drops Bridey to her knees. Watching doctors and police interrogate her mother at the hospital, Bridey realizes her mom has become a monster herself… and she doesn’t want to be saved. But Bridey does.
“Bright Eyes” is about the indomitable spirit of a young girl forced to be brave, required to be resilient, and conditioned to be optimistic, and how she ultimately uses the same traits that helped her to survive her mother’s chaos to create her own happily ever after.
Bridey Thelen-Heidel’s chaotic upbringing meant changing schools between Alaska and California more than twenty times. A Lewis and Clark College graduate, she lives in South Lake Tahoe with her husband and daughter and teaches at her alma mater. A TEDx speaker and frequent podcast guest, Bridey performed in Listen to Your Mother NYC and has been published in MUTHA Magazine. A fierce youth advocate who’s been voted Best of Tahoe Teacher several times by her community, Bridey’s work with LGBTQ+ students has been celebrated in Read This, Save Lives by Sameer Jha and the California Teachers Association’s California Educator. Find out more about Bridey at
https://bridey-thelenheidel.com/
