The Underbelly
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Graduation Year
2026
Writing Track
Narrative/Poetic Medicine
Degree
Master of Fine Arts
Program
Creative Writing
Program Director
Judy Halebsky, PhD
First Reader
Iris Dunkle
Second Reader
Kim Culbertson, MFA
Description
This creative non-fiction piece is a culmination of my work over the last five years as a graduate student within Dominican University of California’s MFA Program. As a candidate for a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with an emphasis in Narrative Medicine, I am submitting this excerpt from a larger memoir depicting the effects of alcoholism, codependency, and mental illness on myself as a child, young adult, and now. This piece depicts the primary, dependent relationship of a child with parents fixated on their own unmet needs creating an atmosphere of pseudo-love, that leads to the child’s unhealthy coping mechanisms. It is an exploration of the correlation between mental health, childhood abuse, addiction, eating disorders, and problematic attachment. It is my hope this memoir will offer new talking points and helpful insight to those with loved-ones struggling with alcoholism and addiction. It is also a testimony to growing up anxiously attached to two narcissists. This thesis represents part one of a larger, three part memoir.