Trauma impacts us physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Listen as Dawn continues to walk us through an example from her own story, how she was impacted and what helped to bring about healing.
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“Our brains continually form maps of the world – maps of what is safe and what is dangerous.” ~Bessel van der Kolk
Show Notes:
Trauma continued:
Disclaimer: Dawn’s podcasts are meant to teach, train, inform and even, encourage. They are not meant to replace personal therapy, when needed.
- Dawn examines the emotional and spiritual impact from her traumatic experience.
- Helpful information to know as you heal from a traumatic event:
The way your body responds to a traumatic event is unique to you.
Be aware of and name how your body and brain respond to little ‘t’ trauma. This will help prepare you for and predict how your body is likely to behave during/following larger ‘t’ trauma. This can be an invaluable tool.
As your body works to take care of itself, hyper awareness is a normal reaction to trauma.
Several examples are given of how your body may respond to trauma.
Practice self-care following a traumatic event. This will help you move from surviving to thriving.
Grief Cycle is reviewed. Be considerate of where you are in the Grief Cycle and remember it is a process. It is not necessarily linear. It is also not predictable at to the speed at which you will proceed through the cycle or how often you will cycle back through previous feelings.
Trauma is never a ‘one and done’ kind of experience. It’s an integrity in your body to maintain what you may or may not have learned from the experience. Information from any kind of event is important because your body will continue to use it to keep you safe.
Own yourself fully.
- Quoted:
“And the same is true of everyone. Our body and brain will need to work the trauma out. We must give our brains and our bodies time to make sense of the event and/0r give it space to return to normal. And these maps that our brains form are there to help us, so we remember what we need to know to keep us safe and what we don’t know. Our brains will literally get rid of that information. It’s no longer important.”
~Bessel van der Kolk M.D., The Body Keeps the Score
“The big issue for traumatized people is that they didn’t own themselves anymore. Any loud sound, anybody insulting them, hurting them, saying bad things can hijack them away from themselves. And, so, what we have learned is that what makes you resilient in trauma is to own yourself fully.”
~Bessel van der Kolk M.D., The Body Keeps the Score
- Dawn discusses Unhealthy and Healthy/Self-Regulating Responses to trauma.
Conclusion~
If you’re having difficulty getting through a traumatic event, always seek professional help.
Healing is best done in a safe and trusting community. You can get through0 not over, not under, and not around your traumatic events- but through. Whether it is big ‘t’ trauma or little ‘t’ trauma, your body wants to be healthy, integrated and able to rest and experience goodness. Goodness can certainly be yours. Each of you is created to experience that goodness in yourself and in community with others.
Mark 12:28-31; Luke 12:7; Prov 16:24; Eph 4:23; 2 Cor 2:9-8; Ps 27:13; Ps 3:8; Ps 63:5
Please join Dawn next week as she continues sharing on the topic of Trauma, specifically, Secondary Trauma.