This photo, originally from Janina Fisher, PhD, is one that I show quite often to my clients.
The response is usually the same, a quiet moment followed by: “Wow…”
Most people have never seen their pain and symptoms drawn up like this, haven’t made the connection between the symptoms they’re manifesting and their painful experiences in the past.
But think of this for a second: Say you’re having a picnick in the woods, and the wood catches fire. You get out of there, but it was a close call. Now, some time later, someone lights a match nearby you. What happens when you smell the smoke? How does your body react?
This is everyday life, for many of us, that have maybe experiences all kinds of trauma, from so called “small t traumas” (things that on the surface one wouldn’t classify as trauma but have big effects on one’s soul, like being made to read out loud for the class, or constant microaggressions from a loved one) to the so called “big T traumas” (the events that are classically named traumas, like a physical assault or a rape).
In the recent years, mental health has, fortunately, become more trauma informed.
Trauma is a difficult thing to carry. And sometimes we don’t even realise that what we are carrying is really trauma, because we have no frame of reference for how things should be.
Fortunately, in the recent years, we’ve seen a surge of new and effective procedures to work through and integrate traumatic experiences into our system. There is so much that can be done. You don’t have to carry that sh*t.
So if you look at this photo and see yourself, I encourage you to find a mental health professional in your vicinity and book an appointment.
It’s challenging work, but the reward is the biggest you’ll ever receive.
Imprints of trauma are more varied than you realise
