An area of focus I find to be incredibly important is in working with and unpacking trauma. Trauma is stored in our minds and bodies and heavily impacts how we view ourselves and how we navigate the world. In telling the stories of our traumas, we are able to see our experience from multiple perspectives and change the way it impacts our lives.
Trauma can be big or small. It occurs after exposure to distressing situations of all shapes and sizes -- such as everyday micro-agressions, loss, abuse, a chaotic environment, and systemic injustices. Traumatic experiences occur from early childhood developmental stages to adulthood and vary as broadly as the repeated distress felt by a preschooler during drop off from their caregiver, to repeated acute sexual abuse.
Everyone has experienced some form of trauma in their lifetime. And when faced with unprocessed trauma, an individual’s sense of self, sense of others, and beliefs about the world are often upended. This disruption impacts our securities, attachments, and overall sense of hope. Trauma unprocessed can take away our sense of power and safety — our autonomy can feel threatened and our identity questioned. The majority of individuals impacted by trauma are those who are not innately in positions of power. Giving those who feel powerless voice by telling stories can recapture a sense of authorship and self-direction and can ultimately lead to improvements in well-being.
The effects of trauma are both psychological and physical, and symptoms often persist long after the initial trauma occurs. If left unaddressed, traumas accumulate and affect emotional wellbeing. Both can be addressed by sharing stories about it in therapy.
The work of therapy is to process trauma in a safe space in order to change the way it impacts our lives. This idea of giving voice to traumatic experiences illustrates the power of narrative in authoring our own stories. By using the safety of a psychotherapy setting to revisit the trauma, we can start rewriting our position as victim to that of survivor. We can use the therapy space to begin validating our experience and in turn empowering ourselves. In retelling our stories through a trauma-focused lens, we begin the healing process by redeveloping our sense of self.
