When a woman chooses healing over pleasing, the loudest backlash often comes from a culture that mistakes ownership for love.
Screenshot from Liza Soberano’s Interview / Documentary on YouTube. Used under fair use for commentary and educational purposes.
Liza Soberano’s Childhood Trauma: What Filipinos Need to Learn From Her Story
We often see celebrities as untouchable figures—living perfect, glossy lives under the spotlight. But when Liza Soberano courageously opened up about her harrowing childhood, she shattered that illusion.
Her story is not just about one woman’s pain. It is also a mirror held up to Filipino culture—revealing how we react, how we judge, and what we need to unlearn.
Instead of offering empathy, many Filipinos online dismissed her revelations as “pa-victim,” or reduced it to tsismis about her breakup with Enrique Gil. This exposes the harsh truth: as a culture, we often struggle to hold space for vulnerability.
Here’s what we can all learn from her story.
1. Family Turmoil and Early Instability
Liza’s childhood was far from the “dream family” image many expect. Her mother struggled with a crystal meth addiction, while her father was entangled in criminal activity (ABS-CBN, Daily Tribune, GMA).
Her younger brother was even born addicted to meth due to their mother’s substance use.
👉 Lesson for Filipinos: Addiction and family dysfunction are not “shameful secrets” to be mocked—they’re social issues we need to address with compassion and rehabilitation, not stigma. Too often, we hide family struggles to “save face,” but silence only allows the cycle to continue.
Screenshot from Liza Soberano’s Interview / Documentary on YouTube. Used under fair use for commentary and educational purposes.
2. The Kidnapping Incident
One of her earliest memories was being taken in a stolen van by her mother’s boyfriend, Michael. He once ordered toddler Liza to hit her baby brother with a car seat; when she refused, he struck her with a gun. Police later intervened (Daily Tribune, GMA).
👉 Lesson for Filipinos: Violence against women and children is not just a headline—it happens in our homes. Our culture’s tendency to stay quiet (“bahala na,” “wag na lang makialam”) enables abusers. We must create safer environments where children’s voices are taken seriously.
3. Foster Care and Abuse
After her parents’ arrest, Liza and her brother lived with a foster caregiver, Melissa, who subjected them to horrific abuse: forcing Liza to act like a “family dog,” choking her with food, humiliating her in ways no child should endure (Manila Standard, GMA, Daily Tribune).
👉 Lesson for Filipinos: Our culture often teaches kids to “respect adults no matter what.” But blind obedience can trap children in cycles of abuse. We must normalize teaching kids about consent, boundaries, and the right to say no.
4. Finding Stability in the Philippines
Eventually, her grandparents and later her father in the Philippines gave her and her brother more stability (Daily Tribune, Wikipedia, GMA). Still, the transition was filled with culture shock and family tensions.
👉 Lesson for Filipinos: Healing takes time. We cannot expect people who suffered abuse to simply “move on.” As a society, we need to extend empathy, patience, and understanding to survivors rebuilding their lives.
Screenshot from Liza Soberano’s Interview / Documentary on YouTube. Used under fair use for commentary and educational purposes.
The Toxic Filipino Reaction
Instead of focusing on her survival and resilience, many Filipinos online zeroed in on irrelevant gossip:
- “She’s only making papansin because she’s not sikat anymore.”
- “Ungrateful, pa-victim—why bring this up now?”
- “Eh, hiwalay lang naman kay Quen, that’s the real issue.”
👉 What this says about us:
- We trivialize trauma because we are uncomfortable with it.
- We focus on chismis because it’s easier than empathy.
- We reduce women’s voices to “attention-seeking” when they step outside the script we wrote for them.
This is crab mentality and toxic judgment at its peak.
Major Takeaways for Us as a Culture
- Listen with empathy – People don’t share trauma to entertain us; they share to heal.
- Stop equating vulnerability with weakness – Survivors are strong for speaking out.
- End the obsession with love teams and gossip – Celebrities are humans, not commodities.
- Create safe spaces – At home, at school, and online, let’s normalize conversations on abuse and mental health.
Self-Reflection for Readers
If Liza’s story triggered something in you, maybe it’s a sign to reflect on your own healing journey. Start with small tools: journaling, meditation, or reading resources that reframe your mindset.
📖 I highly recommend The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk — a groundbreaking book on how trauma shapes us and how healing is possible.
And for day-to-day growth, simple habit-building guides like Atomic Habits are invaluable in reclaiming structure after chaos.
Leave a Reply