Trauma is complex. What does that mean? When a traumatic event happens to us, we react from our nervous system, our inherent fight or flight response that sends signals throughout our mind, impacting our body, and influencing our spirit. How trauma happens to us, as well as within us, is not isolated. The entirety of our being is influenced by trauma in some way- a truth for everyone that encounters trauma. Exactly how trauma affects our mind, our body, and our spirit, is different for everyone. People may experience similar traumas in very similar ways and even process that trauma then cope with it in very similar ways. At their genetic core, however, they are different. Limiting the treatment of trauma to a handful of therapeutic options undermines the powerful variety of traumatic experiences. Each individual who chooses to live actively in recovery from trauma should be empowered with not just some tools, but as many tools as possible to make life a better place to live.
What works for you might not work for another person. Perhaps you and an individual share the same trauma story, have turned to the same drugs and maladaptive coping behaviors, and have landed in the same treatment program. For you, art therapy is revolutionary, unleashing a world of creative expression that hasn’t been accessed for you before. Yoga is a physically healing and emotionally releasing movement and you eagerly look forward to outdoor activities. Your counterpart loathes art therapy because they are not creative and find the activity frustrating. Yoga is just fine for them, but they prefer running instead. You might offer to run with them outdoors, but being in nature doesn’t interest them. Instead, it deeply frightens them.
Everyone is on their own journey in life, especially in the treatment of trauma. After treatment, you leave with a wealth of resources that help you heal, find balance, get grounded, create safety, stay healthy, and other positive benefits that are unique to you. Recovery is a deeply personal and intimate path to walk. Equipping yourself with a plentitude of tools for taking each step ensures that you will never run out of options for ways to maintain serenity in mind, body, and spirit.