Healing from trauma 

Healing from trauma is not a battle against the past; rather, it is a shift in how one identifies with, and relates to, one’s own body and mind.

Every trauma we experience unfolds exclusively at the level of physiology (the body) and within the psychological realm (the mental body). Since both the physical body and the mind are merely collections of elements gathered over the course of a lifetime, they do not constitute our true essence. Learning to create a bit of distance from these two elements gives rise to freedom, causing suffering to collapse.

When someone has experienced something terrible or painful, they are left with two choices:

They can use the experience to sabotage themselves, become embittered, or create a state of profound inner chaos.

Alternatively, they can use the pain, as fuel or as a formative experience, to grow and develop a deeper understanding of life. In theory, the more pain one has endured in the past, the wiser one should have become.

It is important to recognize that a traumatic event no longer exists in the present. When we suffer today because of an old trauma, we are not suffering from the original situation itself, but rather from our own memories and imagination. It is a mistake to try to forget the past; instead, one should view the past as a treasure trove of experience that guides us in navigating life, provided we do not allow dead memories to torment us in the here and now.

Healing begins with taking responsibility, which I define as the ability to respond. Those who refuse to take responsibility for their own inner well-being remain trapped in the role of a victim. In doing so, they effectively allow the perpetrator, or the past situation, to continue mistreating them within their own minds, even years later.