Long After Traumatic Events

Long after the traumatic event is over, our bodies and minds live through the event on a continual basis, just as if it was happening again. In the presence of fear, the survival mode is alive and well, not letting go of those past events. For in survival mode, our bodies are trying to flee from the danger. The energy of that danger our bodies perceived is locked within, unless it finds a way to exit. And so it continues to look for a way to exit, day after day in various ways. Ways such as pain, stiffness, anger, rage, abuse, drinking, sexual behaviors, sleep problems, weight issues, mental illness, anxiety attacks and the list could go on and on.

If we do not allow the event to fully complete and release the energy that is locked within, it will find a way out in one form or another. Sometimes it lies in wait until some unrelated moment pushes the button and at that moment, what seems like an imaginary force takes place within us.

While this may sound dismal and horrific to endure, there is a way out. With the presence of a compassionate, grounded individual, we can move past the fear of those events into fulfillment and purpose for our lives. Sometimes the process may unfold slowly and sometimes more quickly. Sometimes the process seems as if we are giving birth but just like in the process of birth, something beautiful is created. And it is in that moment of release, where we give rise to a new self, a new body and a new empowerment within ourselves.

It is moving past the fears from the survival mode into the mode of growth, awareness and empowerment that we truly find out what it means to be human.